More Than A Hero
by SoraLover1994
Summary: Zack Fair: SOLDIER First Class, young, strong, handsome... PARENT? What occurs when Zack takes in a young child he finds during a mission in Wutai? *Rated T for language and angst*
1. The Lost Boy

**Hm... My inspiration for this story, about a month ago, I just thought Zack would make an interesting parent given that he LOVES womanizing (even though he loves Aerith the most). **

**XD Maybe having a kid around him would change his ways, you know? **

**Still, you'd be surprised how much I've already planned out for this story on paper. I thought about everything: past, present and future.**

* * *

><p>"I promise you, Aerith, I'm going to help you make the flower wagon as soon as I finish up these missions that I have."<p>

"…All right. Good luck, and be careful," A grin curved onto his face.

"Thanks~" He hung up his cell phone, and from around the corner came one of his subordinates—a young woman with curly brunette hair wearing a suit; A member of the Turks, no less.

"You called Aerith~?" She joked.

"Geez, Cissnei, you're always watching me…"

"I'm a Turk. That's my job," Cissnei smiled. "So, you're going to head out to go visit her, right?"

"Later on. I suddenly got a few missions from the science department. They want me to test some new 'super creatures' of theirs, the norm…"

"Your kind of job."

"Exactly."

"Great."

"Well, be seeing you, Cissnei."

"All right. See you later, Zack."

* * *

><p>"Where do you think you're going? Get back here this instant!"<p>

He kept running, never once looking back. Multiple questions kept running through his mind: _Why __am __I __even __running? __And__… __if __I __stop, __what__'__s __going __to __happen? __Where __am __I __going __to __go__…__?_ And then he saw a man in the distance fending off enemies.

Maybe he had finally come across his answer.

* * *

><p>"I wonder why…" <em>Clang!<em> "The science department sent me to-" _Clang!_ "WUTAI! Geez, back off, dammit!" With one swing of the Buster Sword, the experiments were cut to pieces. "…Man… These things are pretty high maintenance…" Zack pulled out a small notebook, brushing his single hanging strand from over his eyes before recording some notes.

Difficulty level… Abilities… Items obtained from-

Then his phone rang, and he heaved a sigh, answering it. "Yeah, Zack speaking."

"How's the mission going?"

"Cissnei?" Zack chuckled. "Going pretty well! Then again, no mission's too intense for First Class SOLDIER Zack Fair, the clean-up guy!"

Now it was Cissnei's turn to laugh. "Well, I won't be long, trust me. I really only called because one of your infantryman asked me to pass along the little message of 'are we still on for dinner later?' to you."

"Tell him that I have to postpone for now. This mission is taking longer than I-" Zack glanced up ahead in time to see a young boy fall to the ground, unconscious, and then his eyes went a bit wide. "I'll, um, call you back!"

"Wait, Zack, I-" But Zack had hung up already, racing towards the boy.

"Hey, kid, are you okay?" Zack took a closer look and saw that the child was covered head to toe in what he believed to be claw marks; even his white hair had been scuffled up. "Wha…? Wait a second… he doesn't appear to be among the Wutai clan… Maybe these creatures attacked him and then he tried to run, or…?" Zack looked to the boy a second time and then groaned. "Man, I'm not getting paid enough for this job…!"

* * *

><p>Zack managed to return to his bedroom—how he managed to go unnoticed while carrying a child on his back by the other SOLDIER members despite being a closet klutz, he would never understand—and set him on his bed as gently as he was able.<p>

"…I could get into serious trouble for this… I don't know who would be more angry at me: Aerith for blowing her off, Cloud for blowing him off… Or Rufus Shinra for smuggling some kid into the corp. Damn… either way, someone's gonna give me an earful…"

"Nngh…" Zack glanced down at the boy and noticed that his once white hair was steadily turning black.

"…The hell…? Is this kid a hybrid or-" Then he recalled the claw and bite marks covering the boy's body. "…Or maybe he just BECAME one. I need to get advice on-" As if on cue, his cell phone began ringing. "…Talk about excellent timing…" He put the phone up to his ear.

"So, you've made other plans?"

"Cloud! Just the guy I needed! Hey, do you think you could come by my room? It's really, REALLY important!"

"…What?"

"Just come by!" Cloud sighed.

"Fine… Whatever you say, Zack…"

* * *

><p>It didn't take long for the young infantryman to make his way to his superior's aide at command.<p>

"Hey, Za-" The raven-haired young man had grabbed the younger by his shirt already.

"Just get in here!" Then he tugged and pulled him inside of the bedroom.

"WHOA!" Once Cloud was inside, Zack slammed the door behind him and then locked it. "W-What'd you call me for-?"

"What do you know about hybrids?"

"N-Nothing!" Cloud replied, still a bit panicked. "Why do you ask?"

"I found a kid out in Wutai during a mission," Cloud opened his mouth to speak. "And before you say something like 'you're harboring a Wutai spy in your room,' I only brought him with me because he's injured."

"…One of your frivolous hero acts?"

"…You wouldn't get it. You really wouldn't. Trust me."

"So, what are you planning to do with him?"

"As soon as he comes to, I'm gonna break some information out of him—where he came from, how he got attacked… The usual."

"Just hope that he doesn't suspect you as an opponent and try to attack you…"

"PLEASE! As if anyone could knock someone like me down all that easily!"

While Cloud and Zack had their backs turned, steel-colored eyes weakly flickered up at them before slowly closing again.

* * *

><p><strong>^_^ Well, that concludes the prologue!<strong>

**:3 Review? Pretty please with Zack on top?**

**...**

**0_0 That had to have been the absolute WORST thing I've ever written in my own commentary.**

**And now I will prepare to run from the Zack fangirls that will want me gone for saying that. REVIEW! *Flees***


	2. His Awakening

**^_^ Chapter 1 is now in! I'll try to update a bit more... smoothly depending on my time management skills this time. **

**Hope you enjoy!**

**Constructive criticism always welcome... Flames are not.**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 1:<strong>_

Zack suddenly let out a rather unnecessarily loud yawn. It was well after midnight, and given all of the altercations and issues within SOLDIER, he was beyond tired… but he wanted to know more about this boy, and found himself remaining awake for that reason alone.

Steel-colored eyes slowly opened, and the boy groaned from the dim light shining in the room, causing Zack to perk up.

"Oh, good, you've finally woken up!" The boy rubbed his tired eyes, staring at Zack. "My name is Zack! What's your name?" Silence. "…Well, it's okay, you don't have to tell me your name if you aren't comfortable! Sound good to you, kiddo?" More silence. "…Um…" This made Zack grow silent as well.

The boy glanced up at him. "…"

"…You're one of those silent types, huh?"

The boy looked away again. "…"

Zack crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. "We're not going anywhere with this…" Then an idea sprang into his mind. "Oh, I know! Do you know how to write? If you don't, I can teach you some Kanji!"

The boy sat in complete silence as Zack scanned every corner of his room for loose scraps of paper, resting his head on the edge of the bed. By the time that Zack had succeeded in finding paper, the boy was fast asleep once again.

"…Wow, Zack the Puppy on mild levels was enough to tucker him out? I didn't even have to do much…" Zack set the stack of papers on his nightstand and then pulled the covers over the sleeping child. "…Ah, damn! Where am I gonna sleep?" He groaned. "I need to borrow a futon…"

* * *

><p>~9:00 A.M~<p>

Zack awoke to the sound of distant whimpering, and immediately looked to the boy. He was still asleep—trembling.

"…Could he be having a nightmare?" The man sprang to his feet and made his way over to the child, shaking him. "Hey, kid, wake up!" The boy shot up, nearly hitting Zack in the face. "Whoa, easy…" Then the boy clung to him, continuing to tremble. "…You're scared, aren't you…?"

There was a knock on the door, "Hey, Zack, coming to breakfast?" Zack froze.

"U-Uh, give me a few minutes, Cissnei!" Zack lifted the boy up and looked around. Then he thought a moment: 'the closet'. _Idea__spark!_ He set the boy down in the surprisingly bare closet, putting a finger to his lips before slowly closing it. He messed with his spiked locks a bit before opening the door. "Well, hello~"

Cissnei stared him up and down. "Zack, did you oversleep again?"

"Huh? Oh, n-no, I wouldn't say THAT!" He cleared his throat. "W-Why?"

"You have good legs," Zack slowly glanced down. He was still in jet black boxers, and boy was it a bad time to give an excuse on WHY.

"…I can explain this in a non-crazy way… AFTER I can find my pants."

"You do that." Zack closed the door and then went over to the closet, opening it.

"…Look, I don't mean to do this to you, but I want you to stay in this room. I have to go for a bit. I promise I'll be back as soon as I can, okay?" The boy's eyes saddened a bit as Zack turned to leave the room once he had put his pants back on.

* * *

><p>He scanned the Kanji letters that Zack had previously written down on the scraps of paper and began copying down certain letters. <em>K-A-J-I. <em>_That__'__s __my __name__…_ He let out a yawn. _I__'__m __Kaji__…_ He crawled back into Zack's bed and went to sleep.

* * *

><p>~4:00 P.M~<p>

Zack heaved a sigh, carelessly carrying a bag over his left shoulder—food for his young guest.

"Is all that for the little guy?" Cloud asked almost inaudibly.

"I figured he might have worked up an appetite since I was gone for so long."

"So, he's awake now."

"…He was mute the entire time. He wouldn't even tell me his name."

"Maybe he just isn't old enough to talk yet."

"He looked like he was about six, that's plenty old enough if you ask me."

"Maybe something could have made him mute by traumatizing him?"

"Well, given that we're near Midgar, it wouldn't be that uncommon."

"But you said that you found him in Wutai. I wonder why he could have been out there all by himself."

"Maybe he was looking for his parents," Zack shrugged. "But there's a chance that he isn't among Wutai, and may have been caught up in the midst of the war and was separated from them."

Zack opened his bedroom door, finding paper scattered all over the floor. He picked up on of the sheets, reading over the messy Kanji. Cloud peered over his shoulder to read as well.

"Does that say 'nightmare'?"

"I was wondering the same thing…" Zack went to the closet, finding the boy inside—shaking and near tears. "H-Hey, what's wrong…? Did you have another nightmare while I was gone?"

"He must have been pretty frightened if he hid in the closet."

Zack lifted the child out of the closet, sighing. "No… It's because he was here all alone. He was scared because no one was here with him when he woke up from the nightmare. I guess he has some sort of abandonment issue…"

"Hey, there's something else here…" Cloud pulled out one of the papers. "It says… 'I wish I had some rice-balls,' I think."

"There should be some in that bag, Cloud, can you find some?" Zack called, now sitting on the bed holding the shaken boy in his arms. Cloud obeyed and within mere seconds had handed him one of the rice-balls. "Here. Are you hungry?"

The boy looked at the rice-ball for a second, and then shook his head no frantically.

"So now he's rejecting food?"

"Hey, don't do this, you have to eat something!" Zack exclaimed, a bit stern. Again the boy shook his head and broke free from Zack's grip. He moved his hands through multiple sheets of paper until he found what he was searching for and held it up to the two young men.

_I__'__m __Kaji. __Who __are __you?_

"Kaji…" Zack repeated to himself before a smile lit up on his face. "Remember me? I'm Zack." Then Kaji pointed to Cloud, and the blonde blinked a few times.

"O-Oh, I'm Cloud," Kaji set the paper down and then scanned through more of the used sheets before holding up another one.

_Thanks __for __helping __me._

"Oh, no trouble! That's what a hero does after all!" Cloud rolled his eyes at Zack's natural enthusiasm.

* * *

><p>The three spent the remainder of the evening in Zack's room until around eight, when Zack received a phone call from Aerith and stepped into the hall to ease the tension around his younger companions.<p>

"You could have told me that you had other plans yesterday, Zack. I would have understood…" Zack was surprised that SHE was calm when he felt so tense.

"Aerith, I wish that I could explain what all has happened lately…" Then he thought for a minute before his lips curved into a grin. "But I could always show you. How about I come and visit you tomorrow?"

"Promise that you'll come?"

"I can't let you down twice in a row," Zack joked. "I'll get there tomorrow, I promise you this time."

"All right. I'll be here," Zack smiled and then hung up, rejoining Kaji and Cloud in his room.

"Was that Aerith?" Cloud asked.

"…May-be."

"You always start grinning like a madman after one of her phone calls," Cloud replied. "So, what did she say?"

"I'm going to go visit her tomorrow and I'm going to bring Kaji along to meet her," Kaji tugged on Cloud's sleeve, holding up a slip of paper.

_Who's Aeris?_

"Wrong Kanji. AERITH is Zack's secret… koibito."

"CLOUD!" Zack hissed, face reddening.

_What's a 'koibito'?_

"His lover, basically."

"CLOUD!" Zack roared, tackling the blonde, putting him in a headlock. "You are NOT supposed to be telling a little kid that!"

"Aw, c'mon, he probably would have figured it out soon anyways!"

"Huh?" He released Cloud. "How's that?"

"The kid is actually pretty bright," Zack stared down at Kaji, who was currently drawing on one of the blank sheets of paper.

"What're you drawing over there, Kaji?" Kaji held up the paper. All that had been completed was what Cloud believed to be the drawing of an eight year old boy's work on the head of a lizard. "Wow, that's pretty good, what is it?" Kaji shrugged.

"I'm still banking lizard…" Then Cloud stood up. "But that's another story for another time—I'm going to bed, I need to be ready for tomorrow's training."

"Oh yeah, that's right!" Zack gave him a thumbs-up. "Go for it, Mr. SOLDIER-in-the-making!"

"Thank you kindly, elder," Zack jumped at this.

"Hey, I am NOT old!"

"Older than I am."

"Alright, alright, enough fooling around... We all have to get some sleep around here. G'night, Chocobo-Head."

"…Night." Then Cloud had gone.

"C'mon, Kaji, time for bed." Kaji didn't hesitate to climb into Zack's bed, and was asleep within a couple of minutes. Once the child was sound asleep, Zack grabbed his room keys and left, locking the door behind him.

It was going to be difficult having to feed two mouths now… so extra work for extra pay and a day off.

Couldn't hurt, right?

* * *

><p>~Midnight~<p>

Zack unlocked the door to his room and had practically stumbled inside before noticing Kaji sitting on the bed, hugging his knees and staring up at him.

"…More nightmares?" Kaji slowly nodded, and Zack took a seat next to him. "…Well, whenever I had nightmares as a kid, I used to go into my parent's room and sleep with them. And this is one of the nights where I really need my bed, so… maybe I'll sleep up here with you if it'll help you with your nightmares."

Kaji seemed to have agreed, for he had moved aside to let Zack lie back. Once Zack was comfortable, Kaji rested his head on the other pillow and fell asleep. Zack couldn't help but chuckle.

"Guessing his hobby is sleeping…" He sighed a bit. "Maybe it's time sleeping became my hobby too…"


	3. Braving the Slums

**So begins the second chapter!**

**What will occur for our young child... and what will befall our hero-to-be during their journey to the slums?**

**^_^ START!**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 2:<strong>_

~10:17 A.M~

They stood inside of the Sector 5 Train Station, awaiting the single train meant to take them below the plate and into the slums of Midgar.

"There are a lot of children down in the slums. Who knows, you might even make some friends while we're down there," There was the sound of an engine roaring, and once he heard the train wailing, Kaji jumped and clung to the elder raven, trembling. Zack chuckled, patting the boy's head. "Don't worry. It's just the train. Hey, you're not claustrophobic, are you?" Kaji shrugged. "…Might just be me, but the slums are a bit stuffy because it's under the plate. But if you don't like it, just let me know."

Kaji took a seat not too far away from the train's entrance, and noticed an infantryman sitting directly across from him. He had nearly panicked until Zack had joined his aide.

"O-Oh, a first class, h-hello!" The infantryman bowed to Zack, who just smiled in return.

"So, what are you doing here?"

"I am going to the slums to visit my brother, sir!" Kaji blinked.

'Sir?'

"Ah, I see."

"So, may I ask why you are headed for the slums?"

"Visiting a friend of mine," The man looked to Kaji.

"Is that boy your son, by any chance, sir?" Zack looked to Kaji, a bit appalled.

"Oh, Kaji? No, he isn't my son…"

"Oh… M-My apologies, I just assumed it because you two look so much alike…"

"Really? I don't see it," Kaji had tuned them out within seconds and allowed sleep to overtake him yet again.

_**"**__**Listen**__**… **__**Do **__**you **__**hear **__**the **__**fire **__**crackling? **__**Do **__**you **__**see **__**what **__**you **__**were **__**created **__**from **__**within **__**the **__**burning **__**flames?**__**"**_

_** "Kaji…"**_

_** "Kaji…" Steel-colored eyes remained completely blank, almost soulless. "Kaji…"**_

"Kaji! Kaji!" Kaji slowly opened his eyes, finding Zack standing above him. "We're here now. Are you ready?" Kaji rubbed his eyes, and then nodded a bit.

* * *

><p>~Sector 5 Slums~<p>

"Well, this is the main street. Over there leads to the market, and down that way is the park. Right now though, you and I are going to head for the church down this path—that's where Aerith should be waiting for us to arrive."

Kaji slowly nodded, continuing to rub his tired eyes. "…"

"Still kind of drowsy?" Kaji nodded a bit. "Man, that's all you really seem to do is sleep… And you sleep way more than the average eight year old boy does too," Kaji just stared at him, and Zack chuckled a bit as they approached the church. "Maybe I oughta keep it cool for your sake."

"…"

"…Okay, fine. Have it your way. And be on your best behavior, okay?" Kaji nodded in response.

He pushed open the church door, spotting a girl in the distance. She had long brunette hair tied into a braid, held together by a red bow, and shimmering emerald eyes. The light from the cracked ceiling gently danced over her as she tended to the flowers before her. Through Kaji's innocent eyes, she was elegant beyond compare.

"Aerith, tending to the flowers again?" She looked up, warmly smiling at her SOLDIER.

"Zack! You're here!" Kaji gasped, his cheeks reddening a bit. Her voice was so kind—so pure. Then Aerith glanced down at Kaji. "Oh, and who is this?" Kaji hid behind the elder raven-haired man.

"Oh, um… This is Kaji—the reason why I didn't come a couple of days ago. He got badly hurt, and well… I just had to help him. He's fine now, but he's mute and won't tell me how he got injured in the first place."

"Hm…" Aerith knelt down beside the cowering boy, smiling. "Kaji… do you remember how you were hurt?" Kaji frantically shook his head. "Do you… WANT to remember?" Kaji thought for a second before shaking his head again.

"I still wish that he would speak…"

"Hey, why don't we go to the park and let him interact with other children? Maybe it could help him open up more. Besides, you and I still have some business to take care of."

"W-What?" Zack sputtered.

"The flower wagon we're making. Remember?"

"Oh… RIGHT."

* * *

><p>~Sector 5 Slums: Playground~<p>

Kaji clung to Aerith the entire time that the three stood in the park, watching all of the children run freely, laughing and smiling.

"Looks like they're all having a lot of fun… Kaji, why don't you go join them?" Kaji frantically shook his head, gripping to Aerith's dress a bit more.

"Zack, don't try to force him if he doesn't want to go and play. He'll be able to when he's comfortable," Then a girl with medium length brown hair walked over to the group.

"Hello, Miss Aerith!"

"Ah, hello there, Satsuki! How's your mother doing?"

"She's fine now, she loved the flowers too," The girl beamed before looking to Kaji. "Aw, who's the little guy?"

"His name is Kaji," Zack piped up. Then a thought crossed Aerith's mind.

"Satsuki, the two of you are around the same age, right? Kaji is eight."

"I'm nine!" Satsuki replied.

"You see, Kaji is really timid and shy, but Zack here wants him to become more open. Do you think that you can watch him while Zack and I go off shopping for a little while?"

"Sure, I can do that!" Aerith looked to Kaji, who was steadily releasing his grip on her dress.

"Kaji, can you at least try?" He nodded a bit, eyes locked on the sand below him. Then Zack ruffled his hair, causing him to look up.

"Don't worry. We'll be back before you know it. If you need us, we're right down in the marketplace. You remember where it is, right?" Kaji nodded.

"Don't worry about us! Go on, get your shopping done!" Satsuki joked. Kaji walked over to Satsuki, gently taking her hand. As Aerith and Zack distanced themselves, Kaji hiccupped, trying to stifle a cry. Satsuki placed an arm around his shoulders, smiling. "Hey, don't worry. They're going to come back soon."

Kaji managed to nod a bit, wiping his eyes. "…"

She noticed the tears filling his eyes, and then thought for a moment. "…Come on! Let's go play in the sandbox. I'll teach you how to make a sandcastle as big as you are!" She led him over to the sandbox, taking a seat on the old, ridged corners. Kaji followed suit when Satsuki had grabbed a silver pail and shovel. "First, you need to fill the bucket with sand—wet sand from underneath all the tanned stuff," She stuck the shovel into the sand, scooping some up before dropping it into the bucket. The process continued for a bit until the bucket was filled. "Then you have to turn the bucket over as fast as you can, like this!"

Satsuki flipped the bucket over and immediately dropped it right side down in the sandbox. Then she slowly lifted up the bucket, and the sand held together in the shape of the bucket. Kaji was amazed.

_Cool!_

"And that's all there is to it!" Satsuki held out the pail to him. "Do you want to try?" Kaji slowly took the pail and shovel from her, following her instructions carefully. Once he was prepared to flip the sand-filled pail, he looked to Satsuki, who smiled at him. He flipped the pail over just as she had previously done, slowly lifting it up. Sure, the castle was crooked, even a bit mediocre, but in his eyes, it was perfect. "Nice job! You're a real natural, Kaji!"

Kaji managed to smile at her. Only seconds later did he hear footsteps on the sandbox and felt the sand crashing down on his legs. He whirled around in time to see his sandcastle become crushed under a pair of dark blue gym-shoes. He slowly looked up, spotting a boy with short black hair and brown eyes.

"Hey, kid, you look pretty bored playing in the sand like this! Name's Kazuki! Wanna play SOLDIER with us? We'll let you be Zack!" Kaji blinked a few times.

'Be Zack?'

"Hey, that was mean! Violation!" Satsuki exclaimed.

"Of what?"

"He was finally smiling! You can't just expect him to play YOUR way!"

"Well, SOLDIER is way more fun than building some stupid sandcastles like little girls," Satsuki glared at him. "What do you say, kid? Wanna join SOLDIER?" Kazuki smirked. "Like I said, you can be Zack."

_…__Why __is __he __mentioning __Zack __so __much? __Is __he __a __friend __of __his? __Or __maybe __he __just __looks __up __to __him?_ Kaji nodded a bit, getting up.

"Kaji…?"

"Great! C'mon!" Kazuki ran ahead, and Kaji glanced back at Satsuki before following. She immediately trailed behind the two.

"…"

"Hey, guys, found a new SOLDIER member!" Then Kazuki looked to Kaji and Satsuki. "Check it out! This guy looks JUST like Zack!"

"Um, who's Zack?" One of the boys asked.

"Okay, so you two are the infantryman! He's playing Zack…" Kazuki looked to Satsuki and grinned. "You can be the lovely damsel. And I'm gonna be the hero of Wutai!"

"…Wutai?" Satsuki repeated.

"Kazuki, are you sure?"

"Of course! I'm the fearless Wutai hero!" Kazuki replied, grabbing a few rocks lying nearby. "And I'm gonna restore my clan no matter who stands in my way or what it takes to defeat my enemies!" He began throwing rocks at Kaji, who let out a cry with each stone that struck him.

"Kaji!" Satsuki exclaimed.

"Die, Zack! Go die along with the rest of SOLDIER! Leave our people be now!" Kazuki hissed. Kaji burst into tears, shutting his eyes tightly as a rock struck his cheek. Satsuki immediately went to the boy's aide, wrapping her arms around him as if trying to shield him.

"STOP IT! Leave him alone!"

"Out of the way, girly!" Kazuki began throwing stones at her next, causing her to flinch, even letting out her concealed cries from the attacks.

_Satsuki__…__! __No__… __Stop __it__…__!__Leave __her __alone, __it__'__s __me __that __you __want __to __repent __for!_

"That's right, go on ahead and cry! You people working with SOLDIER are all just plain WEAK!"

_Stop__it__…__! __Please__…__!_

"There's no way that you'd ever be able to compare to the forces of Wutai!"

_That__'__s __enough__…__!_

"You should all just VANISH!" Kaji slowly reopened his now golden eyes, lowly growling as more tears raced down his face.

_**"**__**Do **__**you **__**see **__**now**__**…**__**?**__**"**_

Kaji struggled to contain himself, breaking free from Satsuki's grip. He charged at Kazuki with incredible speed, interlocking his hands around the boy's neck.

"W-What are-" Kazuki choked out. Kaji tightened his grip each passing second, the eminence of flames growing in his golden eyes, tears still rolling down his face.

"Kaji, NO! STOP!" Satsuki growled, now keeping a grip on the boy's body to force him apart. The moment that Kaji had glanced in her direction, he seemed to have calmed a bit, for the flames disintegrated.

"Kazuki, you okay?"

"T-That kid is CRAZY! He-He almost killed me!" Kazuki exclaimed.

"Kaji! Can you hear me? Say something!" Satsuki shook the boy's shoulders a bit. Kaji's eyes remained unchanged, now blank of emotions.

_**"**__**Do **__**you **__**see **__**what **__**you **__**are?**__**"**_

"Wait right here, okay? I'm gonna go get Zack for you!" Satsuki left the boy alone and ran towards the market.

_No, __don__'__t __leave __me __here __alone__…__! __I __don__'__t __even __know __what__'__s __going __on, __and __it__'__s __scaring __me__…__!_

* * *

><p>"Zack! Miss Aerith!" Satsuki called out. Zack and Aerith paused from their 'window' shopping to glance over at her.<p>

"Satsuki, what is it?" Aerith asked.

"You have to come! It's Kaji, he's gone mad!"

Zack froze. "What? Where is he?"

"Still at the park, c'mon, hurry!"

* * *

><p>Fire and anger raged deep within his soul, burning so brightly that any type of water or service would have been unable to douse it to the fullest.<p>

_ That __wasn__'__t __me__… __It __couldn__'__t __have __been__… __Why __would __I__…__? _Kaji clenched his fists slightly, letting out a few exasperated breaths. _I __feel __so __hot __and __tired __all __of __a __sudden__… __What__'__s __going __on__…__?_

Satsuki returned with Zack and Aerith moments later.

"There, over there!"

"W-What IS this…?" Zack breathed out.

"Kaji!" Aerith called out.

"Hey, Kaji! Snap out of it already!"

**_"__You, __Kaji__… __are __nothing __but __a __monster __with __human __flesh. __You __were __never __meant __to __have __a __soul __or __even __a __will.__"_**

The moment that Kaji caught Zack and Aerith's concerned expressions, his eyes returned to their natural color and he felt consciousness leave him.

The bags Zack was carrying immediately fell from his grasp as he ran to the boy's aide. "KAJI!"

**_ "He's nothing but a puppet after all…"_**

**_ "Should we scrap this?"_**

**_ "No… He could prove quite useful…"_**

* * *

><p><strong>And that's the end of chapter 2...<strong>

**Are the secrets out or are they still in tact?**

**The sand castle scene between Satsuki and Kaji was definitely my favorite to create-it shows the innocence of a child if you ask me, especially since, well... Kaji's not exactly the brightest with girls yet.**

**REVIEW! ^_^**


	4. Overheat

**Okay, so now it's up to chapter 3! ^_^ Let's see what happens, m'kay?**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 3:<strong>_

~Sector 5 Slums: Aerith's Home~

Aerith carefully examined the boy's current state: paler than a sheet, sweating, and just seemed plain exhausted, for his breaths grew heavy with each exhale. He cringed to her slightly cold texture.

"A-Aerith…" Zack called from not too far away, still seeming concerned. Aerith glanced back at him slightly.

"He's running a high fever… It might be because he got overwhelmed by everything around him in a new situation. I doubt that he should be moving around for a while until it breaks; fevers like this tend to be dangerous for younger children."

"…It's my fault… I shouldn't have left him on his own…"

"Now isn't the time for you to harbor all of the blame. I'm not sure how things happened like this myself, but for now, we need to break his fever, even get to eat."

"…He wouldn't even eat when he was well…" Zack mumbled, causing Aerith to stare at him in shock.

"He's gone all of this time without eating a thing? How could you allow that? It's no wonder he's come down with a fever!"

"I TRIED to make him eat, but he wouldn't listen! I even tried feeding him myself and he STILL refused!" Aerith was prepared to retort until Kaji had begun whimpering in his sleep, clinging to his pillow. Zack reached out a hand, moving some hair from over the boy's eyes. "…Man, I can actually feel the heat on his forehead…"

"You see…? It's the most challenging thing in the world to take care of a child, especially because things like this are always going to happen."

"I know that much. But I'm not about to abandon him like this; I want to get him back home, to the place where he comes from."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, Zack."

"…I want to know exactly what happened at the park. We need to talk to Satsuki about it."

"I can call her mother and see if she can let Satsuki stop by to explain things," Then Aerith went into the next room. Zack was dabbing at the boy's forehead with a wet cloth, and when the boy cringed from the cold texture, tired steel eyes opened.

"Shh… Go back to sleep, you need to rest," Kaji just groaned, trying to get up. "DON'T," He immediately obeyed. "…Don't worry. Aerith and I are here to take care of you. We'll blow that fever right out of the water."

_But __it__'__s __not __a-_

Aerith peeked into the room, "Satsuki's going to stop by really soon and she'll tell us everything that happened."

"Good. Hey, do you happen to have any medicine that could help ease him? I already tried using a potion, but it didn't have any effect on him."

"Hm, I might. I'll go check," Aerith left for some time and when Zack heard the doorbell, he nearly jumped.

"Aerith!"

"Can you answer that?" She called back, causing Zack to slump.

"Okay!" He got up to answer the door, trying not to curse himself. He looked around, and then looked down. There stood the rather short and concerned Satsuki. Then again, maybe he was just too tall, but hey, wasn't the point right now, was it?

"How's Kaji?" She came inside before Zack could reply, and he just rolled his eyes before closing the door.

"Aerith just thinks that it's a stress illness along with low blood levels and a bit of dehydration, but I think it's worse than that…"

"Sorry, but I'm with a professional on that diagnosis," Zack slumped. "So, what are you going to do about your kid?"

"He is NOT my kid, dammit!"

"No need to get so testy, I was only joking."

"Perhaps now you can explain, Satsuki?" Aerith called. Satsuki twiddled her fingers a bit.

"Um, well… I was teaching him how to make sand castles, and then these guys asked him to play SOLDIER with them. The leader of the group, Kazuki, told him to portray you, Zack."

"…Me?"

"He said that it was because he looks like you."

"…" Zack crossed his arms.

"What happened next, Satsuki?"

"Then he said that he was going to be the fearless Wutai hero looking to restore his clan."

"Wutai?" Zack growled.

"…Then he started throwing rocks at Kaji, and Kaji started crying because he was scared. I jumped in to help, and then Kaji just suddenly… snapped. Literally."

"KAJI snapped?" Aerith gasped.

"He was like a completely different person. His eyes, they were this-this weird yellow color, and he started choking Kazuki. If I hadn't stopped him, Kaji would have killed him."

And speaking of snapping…

"Man, I'm gonna beat that kid SENSELESS for putting him through this!"

"Zack, there's a word for that: child abuse!" Satsuki retorted. "You could be arrested and kicked out of SOLDIER for that!"

"…Damn."

"We can deal with Kazuki later on," Aerith intertwined her arms with Zack's, and the man felt heat rising to his face. "Right now, our priority is taking care of Kaji."

"…Yeah. You're right."

* * *

><p>~1:37 A.M~<p>

It was Zack's turn for watch duty, for Kaji had far from recovered. Only flaw was that he was exhausted from constantly darting between his advanced missions as a First Class and taking care of a child.

Aerith wasn't kidding when she said that taking care of a kid IS the most challenging thing in the world.

_I__'__m__so__tired__…_ He slowly looked down at Kaji, who appeared more at ease. To Zack, it wasn't a surprise—Aerith gave him a pain-killer before he returned to sleep. _…__I__'__m __sure __he__'__ll __be __all __right __if __I __close __my __eyes __for __just __a __few __minutes__… __Just __for __a __few __measly __minutes__…_

~3:02 A.M~

_**"**__**Does **__**that **__**child **__**have **__**some **__**sort **__**of **__**psychological **__**disorder? **__**He **__**never **__**speaks**__**…"**_

_** "KAJI is not a child."**_

Kaji whimpered a bit, gripping the blanket in his tiny hands.

_**"**__**Kaji?**__**"**_

_Make __it __stop__… __Please__…_

_**"**__**Is **__**that **__**his **__**name?**__**"**_

_** "It is what he is."**_

_** "…What IS he?"**_

_** "He is a monster with human skin."**_

_DON__'__T __CALL __ME __THAT!_

Kaji's eyes flew open—golden. He got to his feet, aimlessly walking towards the front door. He abruptly twisted the doorknob and exited Aerith's house without a word.

* * *

><p>~3:17 A.M~<p>

_Why __is __it __so __cold __in __here__…__?_ Zack let out a yawn, looking around. He glanced at the couch, and he snapped fully awake.

Kaji was gone.

"…Please be in the bathroom, please be in the bath-" Zack noticed the front door wide open and nearly had a panic attack. He raced out of the door, not even bothering to close it behind him. "KAJI!"

* * *

><p>Kaji stood by the train tracks, golden eyes blank of emotions as he aimlessly awaited the time he could leave. He coughed harshly into his sleeve, tears welling in his eyes from the intense pain.<p>

Stupid painkillers are wearing off…

_**"**__**T-That **__**kid **__**is **__**CRAZY!**__**"**_

_** "He's a monster."**_

_** "He almost killed me!"**_

_** "He's a monster with human skin."**_

Kaji clutched his head, crying out as the words echoed through his mind.

_**"**__**Maybe **__**he **__**is **__**TOO **__**destructive **__**given **__**his **__**bloodline **__**and **__**size**__**… **__**He **__**doesn**__**'**__**t **__**speak **__**nor **__**does **__**he **__**talk**__**… **__**He **__**can**__**'**__**t **__**be **__**human.**__**"**_

Kaji opened his mouth to speak, and then bit his bottom lip, the pain intensifying each passing second.

_I __want __to __scream__…_

_ I want to be heard…_

_ I want to call THEM monsters…_

_ I want…_

_ I want to LIVE!_

Kaji dug his nails into the concrete, letting out a yell.

Zack had paused mid-walk and immediately turned when he heard the sound of a yell in the distance, Mako-infused eyes brimming with concern.

"The station!" Zack sighed. "Oh great, just great, wonderful… Time to run like you mean it, Zack!" Then he sped off.

_Who am I…?_

_WHAT am I…?_

_Someone, tell me!_

Zack sped into the train station. "Hey! Answer me! KAJI!"

Kaji felt his heart miss a beat, and all of his mental pain came to an abrupt halt. He could feel himself steadily falling towards the ground… until he then felt someone tug his arm and pull him back, immediately causing him to look up.

_Zack__…_

"Are you ok—Whoa, Satsuki wasn't kidding about your eyes changing colors…" Kaji burst into tears, burying his face in the man's chest. "Hey… It's okay, all right…?"

_I __want __you __to __hear __me__…_

_ Please… Hear me as I am…_

"Kaji, it's going to be okay. I'm here now. You don't have to be scared."

_I__'__m __not __scared__…_

"Calm down."

_I__'__m __TRYING!_

_ I'm really trying…_

_ I just…_

"…Come on. I'll take you back to Aerith's now…" Zack had nearly cradled the child in his arms during the walk back.

Kaji knew that it was going to be much harder to sleep from now on.

* * *

><p>"Where could that accursed child have gone so soon?"<p>

"Maybe someone freed him and dispatched him to Wutai… No one knows for sure where he could have gone from there."

"If that truly is the case, he could be anywhere… Boss wouldn't like this."

"Who says that he'd have to know that he ever got out?"

"What? Why is that?"

"Because we can handle this on our own."

* * *

><p><strong>Wowwwww... 0_0 So, anything revealed yet? <strong>

**Yes? No? Maybe so?**

**^_^ Well, at least now I can say that the story is falling into place!**

**Oh, and thank you SO MUCH for the reviews! I promise to keep this story going!**


	5. First Words

**0_0 I actually have 8 reviews (Actually 7 since one posted twice, but I'm still SO happy)! ^_^**

**I'm so glad that there are people that actually like this story!**

**And now we're up to chapter 4! Let's hear it for four!**

**Zack: You're serious about that?**

**Me: 0.0 What? Problem?**

**Zack: ...Nope, not at all.**

**Kaji: -Writes down- Anyways, all that's owned in this fanfiction is the plot, part of it at least, and me.**

**Satsuki: -Waves- And me!**

**Kazuki: . And me, unfortunately.**

**Zack: ^_^ Not me!**

**Me: -Blushes- But, oh, how I wish I did... It'd be a dream come true to own Zack Fair.**

**Kazuki: -_- For the love of Jenova, buy a DOLL of him already.**

**Me: No money.**

**Kazuki: ...Ha ha.**

**All but Kazuki and Kaji: READ AND REVIEW! ^_^ **

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 4:<strong>_

Loud snores abounded the tiny living room. Kaji just glared at Zack's sleeping form—the source of the sound. He reached for his pillow, throwing it at the elder man. Zack let out a yell and then pulled the pillow off, blowing some hair out of his face. Kaji covered his mouth, stifling a laugh.

"Hey, what was THAT for?" Kaji burst into laughter, leading Zack to just grin. "I see that you're feeling better today, huh?" Kaji nodded.

"Ah, good morning, you two," Aerith called, entering the living room.

"Good morning, Aerith~"

"Is everything going okay?"

"Yeah, Kaji's fine now. He, um, woke up laughing at me." Aerith walked over to the boy, her palm now on his forehead. Kaji smirked.

"That's great to hear. He even seems to be smiling a lot more."

"Maybe he'll be talking soon."

"Maybe. So, are you heading back out for work soon?"

"…Yeah… I really have to go back soon or they'll get suspicious of my actions."

"Can you at least stay for breakfast?"

"…I, um-" Zack's stomach growled. "…I'll stay for breakfast!"

* * *

><p>"Wow, Aerith, I never knew you could cook~" Zack joked, now wrapping an arm around her shoulder. Kaji blinked a few times upon noticing the interaction.<p>

Were adults always this intimate?

"Of course I can. Do you expect me to always eat take-out like you do?"

"Wha-Hey! That was LOW!"

"Couldn't resist."

There was a knock on the front door. Kaji decided to get up and answer it while Zack and Aerith continued to 'fight'. Once he had opened the door, he spotted Satsuki, her brunette locks pulled to one side.

"Hi, Kaji! Are you doing better?" Kaji nodded. "Oh, great, I'm glad! Are you and Zack heading back home soon?" Kaji nodded again. "I see… I, um… I wanted to give you something before you left."

Satsuki grabbed his hand, placing a small stone in it. Kaji stared at the crimson surface and the single white dot in the middle. To him, it represented symbolization of 'light in darkness'. Then he stared up at her, and she twiddled her fingers a bit.

"I found that a while ago and I've been carrying it around with me for luck. But… I've got all the luck that I need right now. So, you should hold on to it. Okay?" Kaji opened his mouth to speak, but by then she had already run off, leaving him standing alone in the doorway

"Kaji! Breakfast is on the table!" Zack called. Kaji glanced back, then at the stone in his hand before slowly closing the front door. He sighed and then went to join his elder companions.

"Who was at the door, honey?" Aerith asked.

Kaji scanned the area for paper until Zack handed him a napkin and a marker. He carefully sketched out the girl's name.

"Satsuki? Huh, wonder why she left in such a hurry…"

"Maybe she came to say goodbye," Aerith suggested.

"Why? It's not like we won't be back soon."

"…" Kaji gripped the stone in his hand, keeping it behind his back.

_Satsuki__…_

* * *

><p>~Sector 5: Train Station~<p>

"Are you coming back soon?"

"No worries, Aerith! I'll come and visit you again soon!" Aerith knelt down beside Kaji, ruffling the younger's hair a bit, causing him to chuckle.

"You be good for Zack, okay?" Kaji grinned, nodding in response.

"A-Ah, Aerith?" Aerith glanced over at Zack.

"Yes?" Zack suddenly froze before rubbing the back of his head.

"…N-Never mind…" Kaji cocked an eyebrow.

"Hm, okay. If you say so."

"I wish that I could have helped you with the flower wagon…"

"Oh, it's all right! There's always next time. Besides, I still had a lot of fun spending time with you and Kaji."

"Yeah, well, maybe next time Kaji won't be put in such bad shape… Maybe."

"Ah, that reminds me. I left a note in your jacket for you."

Zack jumped, "When did you-?"

"Well, I'll be seeing you!" Then Aerith left, giggling. Zack slumped.

"Always so cunning, that Aerith…" Kaji tugged on the man's sleeve, pointing towards the upcoming train.

* * *

><p>The train was completely dead.<p>

No passengers spare Zack and Kaji were aboard, and even they remained silent throughout the ride. Maybe it was always this quiet during the morning ride. Kaji yawned, rubbing his tired eyes afterwards.

"Still tired, sleepyhead?" Kaji nodded a bit. "Well, we do have a long ride ahead of us. Do you want to take a nap?" Kaji thought for a moment before shaking his head. "…Then what?"

Kaji opened his mouth to speak, "I… I want to talk…" Zack's eyes went wide.

Kaji's voice was so clear, so calm, and so… unexpectedly sweet.

"…Your first words?" Kaji smiled and then nodded. Zack chuckled, putting the boy in a playful headlock. "Get over here, you little scamp!"

"S-Stop!" Kaji laughed, pushing Zack away slightly.

"Why did you wait so long to say something to me?"

"…I couldn't talk. I'm not sure why I couldn't, but…" Kaji sighed. "I don't even remember why I wanted to start talking in the first place…"

"Is that why you left last night?"

"I left?"

"Yeah, at about three in the morning, you up and left. You came to the station, and… If I didn't run like I meant it back then, you would have fallen towards the tracks and likely died."

"…Oh… Um…" He folded his arms across his chest. "I see… I'm sorry… I wasn't sick or anything, my body… I just felt like I was overheating…"

"Overheating?"

"Mhm…"

Total silence.

"Hey, Kaji… How about when we return to Shinra Corp, I teach you the meaning of being in SOLDIER?"

"M-Me? In a group like SOLDIER?"

"Sure! I had a mentor once too. Maybe it's time that I gave up the ghost and chose to follow in his footsteps…"

_But__… __I __don__'__t __want __a __mentor, __I __want__…_ "…Okay…"

"Great!" Kaji stared out of the train window, grinning.

"Hey, Zack…"

"Hm?"

"Can we go back to the slums again soon?"

"We can go back to the slums to visit them anytime that you want, Kaji."

* * *

><p>Sure enough, Kaji had embraced his favorite hobby and fell asleep, resting his head on his elder's lap. Zack was humming a random tune while staring out of the window before his phone began ringing. He slowly lifted Kaji's head up off of his lap, gently laying him down on the seat before going into the next cart to answer his phone.<p>

"This is Zack."

"Zack, where ARE you?"

"On my way back now, Cloud. What's going on?"

"The Turks are getting suspicious. Cissnei told me that the science department is out hunting all over Midgar for something."

"And what does that have to do with me?"

"Cissnei said that it would be good for you to assist in the search."

"What? But I'm with child!"

"…Sorry, I can't really do much about your time being spent with Kaji. It's hard to take care of a child while you're try-"

"Trying to take care of a child and think about work, I KNOW!" Zack heaved a sigh, "Look, I would have been back yesterday, but then Kaji had a breakdown and got sick, so I had to stay at Aerith's to take care of him!"

"What brought that on?"

"I'm not too sure myself…" Then Zack thought, "But I'll be back in about fifteen minutes… I need you to meet with me then, on LOVELESS Avenue."

"And then what?"

"We'll figure it out from there."

* * *

><p>Zack stepped out of the train station about fourteen minutes and twenty-two seconds after his phone call—he was literally checking his phone every second—carrying the still sleeping Kaji in his arms. He had gone down every corner before making his way down to LOVELESS Avenue, where he found his young infantryman companion awaiting his arrival, leaning up against a wall.<p>

"Hey," Cloud's tone seemed a bit TOO simple.

"Hey there."

"So, how were the slums?"

Zack grinned, "Aerith was wonderful~"

"…I clearly said the SLUMS."

"Still."

"So, what was it that you were planning to do again?"

Zack handed the sleeping boy over to Cloud, "…I need you to watch Kaji for me while I go and help the Turks."

"W-What? Why me?"

"You're the only one that knows he is HERE besides me, Cloud. You've kept him company lots of times!"

"B-But that was only for a few minutes! What if you're gone for hours, even DAYS? I have to take missions too, I-"

"Look, if it makes you more comfortable, if I think it's too late, I'll tell Cissnei that something came up and that I need to return to Shinra."

"But…"

"Don't worry; I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Zack…"

"I promise!" Then Zack waved before running off.

"Wait, Zack, I-…Oh, great…" Kaji groaned a bit, opening his tired eyes, now facing Cloud. "U-Um, hi there, Kaji…" Kaji tensed up. "…Zack had to go take care of work, but he should be back later on, so you're going to hang out with me tonight, okay?"

"…" Kaji nodded. Cloud set the boy on the ground, and Kaji immediately clutched the blonde's hand.

"Hey, do you want to go get some ice cream? It might make you happier," Cloud realized his choice of words, and then shook it off. Kaji just stared at him. "Don't worry, ice cream is really sweet, you'd like it a lot, I promise."

In the distance was a small shop that went by the name 'Sweet-Tooth'.

Oh, what a joy _this_ was going to be…

* * *

><p>Kaji stared at the vanilla ice cream, single scooped on a waffle cone. To any child, it would be the world's greatest delicacy, the way Cloud depicted it. Speaking of the Chocobo-headed young man, he was graciously enjoying his own scoop of chocolate, occasionally looking to the young raven with concern.<p>

"You're not even going to try it?" Kaji looked to Cloud, then at the ice cream. He slowly put the treat up to his lips, taking a single lick of it.

The sensation was sweet… TOO sweet. Even a single lick made the burning sensation in his soul begin to dim. He hated the abnormality brought on by the treat.

He handed the cone over to Cloud and then rested his head on the table.

"Hey, now… you can't keep rejecting food like this, you'll only be making yourself worse."

But I really don't like that…

"Whether or not you don't like something, you can't always be picky with your food. Do you understand?"

"…"

"Kaji, do you?" Kaji yawned, "Are you even listening to me?" Second later, Cloud heard a light snoring. "You fell asleep on me already?"

* * *

><p>~1:02 A.M~<p>

Zack came to Cloud's room as soon as he had returned to the corp. "Hey, I'm back. How did it go?"

"…Your kid is an absolute PAIN."

"What happened?"

"I took him to get ice cream after you left, and he took ONE lick of it before he didn't even want it! THEN when I try to tell him to try and eat it, he ignores me and falls asleep!"

"He's just a little kid, Cloud, they're all nothing but picky eaters," Zack walked over to the bed and then lifted the sleeping boy off of it, "He probably just isn't ready to eat yet, just give him time."

"I TRIED, Zack."

"…Trust me. It takes time," Then he turned to leave, "I'm gonna crash. G'night!"

"O-Okay. Night."

* * *

><p>Zack gently laid Kaji on the bed, pulling the covers over him. He heaved a sigh, looking to the pile of food wrappers in the corner—the items eaten by him when they were supposed to be for Kaji.<p>

He was not an ordinary picky eater—Kaji literally ate nothing since he had fallen into Zack's arms.

Something was really up with this kid.

Kaji suddenly let out a moan, and Zack noticed him suddenly position himself to clutch his stomach.

"Kaji?" Kaji whimpered. Zack reached out a hand, putting it over the boy's forehead. "…Crap… Hang on, Kaji, I-I'll go get ice!"

By the time that Zack had returned with ice, Kaji had already cooled down enough and had returned to sleeping peacefully.

"…Must have just been a heat flash or something…" He gently shook the boy, "Hey, Kaji, c'mon…"

"Hm…?" Kaji looked up at Zack, rubbing his eyes, "Zack…"

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Mhm… I'm okay…"

"Here, open your mouth and suck on this."

"Hm?" Kaji opened his mouth and Zack placed a rather small piece of ice inside. Kaji didn't mind how cold the frozen substance was or the fact that it had no sweet taste like the ice cream did.

It was actually… good.

"Do you want another piece?" Kaji nodded, and Zack managed to continue the process up until all of the ice was gone. "Great job! Did you really like that?"

"It was really cold… but it was… refreshing."

"Good. Now, you don't need to go to the bathroom or anything before you go back to bed, do you?"

"Um…" Kaji shook his head, sucking on his thumb a bit.

"Are you sure?"

"Mhm…" Zack grabbed a futon from his closet and set it on the floor.

"Okay then. Go on, time for bed."

Kaji yawned, lying back on his pillow, "Okay… Good night, Zack…"

"Sleep tight, kiddo."

* * *

><p>~4:18 A.M~<p>

_Flames __were __burning __all __around __him, __but __he __had __yet __to __feel __a __thing__…_

_ **'****I****f feels ****like ****I****'****m ****being ****watched****…'**_

_ And then he sprang from the flames—a large beast with a horn, covered in flames. A single punch from the mighty beast's hand was all it took-_

Kaji jolted awake, and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He heaved a sigh, shifting about a bit before he completely froze. His shorts were wet. He slowly lifted the sheets and realized his greatest fear at the moment—the SHEETS were wet. He bit his bottom lip, stifling a cry.

Zack was really going to let him have it THIS time…

Unless… Wait! Unless he never knew that it happened!

_Maybe __there__'__s __a __laundry __room __near __here__…_ Kaji stripped the sheets from the bed and then removed his wet shorts. He fumbled through a bag and found a pair of black jeans—ones that Zack knew that he would need eventually. Once that had been settled, he opened the door and began dragging the wet items down the hall.

* * *

><p><strong>So ends chapter 4! ^_^<strong>

**Kaji: 0_0 And I just NOW get to talk?**

**Satsuki: Well, there's always a plothole...**

**Kaji: -_- Pretty screwed one if you ask me.**

**0_0 So, NOW what do you guys think? :3 I know people are guessing on what Kaji is.**

**Some people say a Zack clone. **


	6. Mission: Clean Up

**Kaji: 0_0 Wow, we're up to chapter 5 at long last.**

**Me: ^_^'' Sorry, late updating because of finals... And plus I just got a college acceptance today, so I'm really happy! I'm well on my way to becoming a writer now! Anyways, back to the story, I'm quite surprised because I've now passed the tenth review mark!**

**Kazuki: -_-' 8 more and you've gotten your most on a story.**

**Satsuki: ^_^ Congrats!**

**Me: ^_^ I'm just happy to know that there are people out there who like my story.**

* * *

><p><strong>Oh, and by the way... XD You guys STILL haven't gotten the right answer on the last guess.<strong>

**Wanna try again?**

**REVIEW IF YOU LIKE IT, AND GIVE CRITIQUES IF YOU MAY! ^-^**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 5:<strong>_

There was a laundry room about two floors down from Zack's room, and by the time Kaji had discovered it, he was ready to collapse right onto the wet sheets and go back to sleep.

But that obviously wasn't an option, was it?

He reached up, trying to grab the compartment that would open the washing machine's door. Man, he detested being short at eight years old…

"Do you need some help there?" Kaji froze, for the voice didn't belong to Zack or to Cloud—it was a female's voice. He slowly looked to the doorway, spotting a woman with shoulder length brown hair. He immediately began trembling, "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you unless you give me a reason to."

"O-Oh…" He breathed.

"How did you even get into this building? There aren't supposed to be any outsiders, let alone any kids…" There were distant sounds of the name 'Kaji' being called, "…Is your name Kaji?"

"Y-Yes, ma'am…"

"Ah, then this should run smoothly. Stand right there," She peered out into the hall, "Looking for something, Zack?"

The raven-haired man quickly turned around, "O-Oh, Cissnei, hey! N-No, not looking for anything in particular, why?"

"Because I think that I have what you're looking for. Come in here," Zack obeyed, and then noticed Kaji in the corner.

"Kaji!" He ran over and lifted the boy up, "Don't sneak out like that, you had me worried!"

"I'm sorry…"

"So he IS yours."

Zack looked to Cissnei, "I can explain all of this in-"

"In a non-crazy way, you want to say? You're just lucky that I'm willing to hear you out."

"Cissnei…" She walked over to the entrance to the laundry room, closing the door and locking it behind her.

"Now then… Explain to me why you're harboring such a small child inside of Shinra—in secrecy."

"…Well, I found him in Wutai—injured and alone. He was completely mute up until recently. He's been rejecting food, and he even overheated a few days ago," She remained unimpressed, "He keeps having nightmares too. Cissnei, he needs someone to be there for him! I want to help him!"

"Do you know what kind of trouble that you could get yourself into for smuggling him into the corp.? You could lose your job, at best!"

"But he isn't a part of Wutai, and even if he were, he's still too young to understand the bouts of the war!"

"Are you really willing to risk all of this for a child?"

"Already have," Kaji clung to the man's arm, staring at Cissnei, "So, what are you planning to do about all of this? Report me? I don't think I have to be in SOLDIER in order to become a hero." Cissnei was appalled by his words.

He wasn't afraid of losing his only dream over a child?

"I'm not going to be the one that ruins things for you right now. I just want you to be weary of your actions, especially if you're still trying to play the hero card. I know how loyal that you are to SOLDIER."

"Well… Who says that I can't be more than a hero?"

"That's if you know how to handle pulling off missions AND taking care of a child at nineteen."

"No challenge is too big for Zack Fair, the clean-up guy!" The raven-haired man beamed. Cissnei forgot how big of an ego he tended to have.

"U-Um, speaking of cleaning up…" Kaji piped up, "Can you clean the sheets, please?"

"…Kaji, I clearly asked you if you needed to go to the bathroom BEFORE you went to bed!"

"Yet another thing that you lack—you aren't supposed to yell at a child when they've done something wrong."

"I wasn't yelling!" Zack hissed before looking to Kaji. Said boy was trying to hide under the wet sheets from him, "Kaji, get from under those sheets!"

"No!" Kaji whimpered.

"Don't be such a coward!" Zack started tearing through the sheets until he spotted Kaji, "…Look… I'm not mad at you, okay? I just want to be able to listen to you when you need to tell me something."

Kaji crawled from under the sheets and into the man's arms. Cissnei smiled a bit.

* * *

><p>~5:00 A.M~<p>

Zack was finishing up the sheets, and Kaji and Cissnei weren't too far away.

"You know, Kaji… I know how it feels to be alone as a child inside of Shinra."

"Really?" Kaji replied, "Why is that?"

"I was raised here, inside of Shinra," Then Cissnei glanced up at Zack slightly, "And I think that Zack is going to want you to do the same as I have until he figures out where you belong."

"…But where do I belong? Will I know for sure when I find out?"

"Hm… it's really too soon to tell. It's possible that you'll just know when you reach the place you call home."

"Okay, the sheets smell like flowers, and it's almost dawn. Time for bed, Kaji," Zack called.

"But I wanna talk more with Miss Cissnei!"

Cissnei ruffled the boy's hair a bit, giggling, "We can talk later on. Right now, you need to rest. Okay?" Zack sighed.

"Hm, okay…" Kaji yawned before curling up in the corner and falling asleep.

Gosh, this boy sleeps WAY too much to be so close to double-digits…

"…Well, that was fast."

"Do you think you can carry him for me, Cissnei? I have to carry the sheets."

"M-Me?"

* * *

><p>"It's amazing how much he resembles you. It's almost as if he's really your son." Cissnei was cradling the sleeping boy in her arms—it was incredible how she got attached to him so quickly.<p>

"I've been getting that a lot…"

"If his eyes were Mako-infused, I'd really think that he was yours."

"…Don't even joke like that…"

"Well, you ARE a ladies man," Zack couldn't find any way to retort to such words, "Still, I'm curious about where he's come from too. It's not every day that a child is left abandoned in the world at such a young age."

"Then you're gonna—"

"Yes, I'm willing to help… but not for your sake. I'm helping because I know exactly what Kaji has to deal with—being lost in the depths of Shinra," Then she handed the child over to him. "And now I'm going to bed."

"Wha-Cissnei!"

"Good night," She waved a bit as she left, and Zack sighed.

"So much for that chance…"

He returned to his room, setting Kaji down on the futon before fixing the dry sheets on his bed. He smiled down at the boy before lifting him up and putting him to bed. "Man… This is really getting rough, but it'll be worth it to make sure that this guy gets home safely, right?"

* * *

><p>~5:22 A.M~<p>

"Zack… Zack…" Mako-infused eyes darted open, facing his young child.

"Hm… What's up?"

"…I had another nightmare… Can you, um…?"

"Let me guess: You don't want to go back to sleep alone and you want me to come up with you?" Kaji nodded a bit, "…If it puts me back to sleep, I'd help a Behemoth with nightmares."

"…Behemoth?"

"Never mind," Zack replied, getting into bed with the boy, "Off to bed now. Tomorrow I'm going to take you out on your first mission brief."

"What's a mission brief?"

"You're gonna watch your buddy Zack at his finest—taking missions out like a pro," Kaji climbed up next to him, "Who knows, you might even pick up on a few tricks while you're watching."

Kaji was already asleep by the time that Zack had completed his sentence, and Zack chuckled, ruffling the boy's hair a bit.

* * *

><p>"Okay, this is the simulation room. This is where you can practice standard missions," Kaji peered into the room, looking up towards the ceiling. He had nearly tilted his head back until Zack had grabbed him by his hood in order to keep him balanced while half-dragging him across the room.<p>

"W-Wah, Zack, hold on, that hurts!"

"Don't be overactive during this, okay?"

"I'm not, I'm NOT!" Then Zack released him and Kaji let out a few breaths, "Geez, you almost KILLED me!"

"You're overreacting."

"Are not!"

"…I've never seen this side of you before."

"Side?"

"You're acting like what you really are—an eight year old boy. That makes me feel a bit pleased."

"Why?"

"Because it shows that you're finally getting adjusted to everything around you."

"…Maybe you are too."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Never mind. Come on, let's go, let's go!"

"…Seriously!" Kaji tugged on Zack's jacket a bit before noticing a slip of paper sticking out slightly.

"Zack, there's something in your pocket. I think it's Aerith's note."

"Note? What note?"

"_**The**_ note!"

"What NOTE?"

_**"**__**Yeah, **__**well, **__**maybe **__**next **__**time **__**Kaji **__**won**__**'**__**t **__**be **__**put **__**in **__**such **__**bad **__**shape**__**… **__**Maybe.**__**"**_

_** "Ah, that reminds me. I left a note in your jacket for you."**_

Zack reached into his pocket and pulled out the so-called note and read over it for himself.

_I told you that raising a child was the most difficult thing in the world to accomplish… but in the long run, it's also the most rewarding. I know that you'll find your way, Zack, and that you'll do everything in your power to keep him safe._

A smile spread onto the man's face, "I know, Aerith… I know…"

"Yoo-hoo, Zack?" Then he looked to Kaji, patting the boy on the head.

"Never mind. Let's just get this over with, okay?"

This only led Kaji to become more confused, but he shook it off and sighed. Zack had begun pressing buttons on a computer, and Kaji glanced up at the large overhead screen.

"Um… begin… mission?"

Zack grinned, "Let the games begin," The word 'yes' was highlighted on the screen in blue, "Hold on tight, Kaji, this is gonna be a bumpy ride!"

Kaji noticed a beam of light emanate the room, and his eyes went wide as he felt himself practically being pulled into the beam of light.

* * *

><p>Kaji blinked a few times before looking around the region—vast, grassy plains, and a small farmhouse in the distance. Zack was up ahead fending off enemies, and Kaji froze once he caught sight of one of the creatures that had fallen at the man's feet.<p>

Why did watching creatures be killed seem so… familiar?

Zack glanced over at Kaji once the enemies were cleared out, "Hey, I see you were watching!" Kaji paled a bit, "Hey, you okay, Kaji? You look like you've seen a ghost," The child blinked a few times in response.

He was THAT warped?

"I-I'm fine, really!"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Kaji began walking ahead until Zack interjected by grabbing the boy by the arm.

"Better let me go first in case more of those experiments show up."

"Aw…"

"Onward we travel, little lost boy!" Zack walked ahead, Kaji trailing behind him like a lost puppy.

Wait, he'd been doing that since he first MET Zack. How the heck was this not ironic anymore—Aw, whatever.

"Hey, Zack, what was your mission anyways?"

"This is just to hunt down a certain item. It's located in a chest within the plains. Wanna hunt it down?"

"Yeah, yeah!"

"All right! I'll handle the big, bad experiments, and you can carry out the mission!"

Kaji saluted, "Sir, yes sir!" Then Kaji sped ahead, and Zack immediately raced after as experiments spawned from each direction around Kaji. Zack leapt over one of them to reach the boy, slicing it into pieces in the process.

The rest… well, they fled from the big, bad SOLDIER.

"And THIS is why you can't go charging in during a mission. Okay?"

Kaji chuckled nervously, "Sorry…"

"So, which path do you want to take now?" Kaji looked around, spotting the river up ahead, cringing a bit.

"The river."

"Okay, then," Zack led the younger ravenette to the riverbank. Kaji was compelled by the sight—clear blue skies hovering over the aquamarine bank, the waves gently crashing along the grass. It drew a grin upon his face. "You think this is pretty, you should see Costa del Sol."

"Is there water there?"

"Yep. Water, sand, skies… not to mention bikinis…" Zack snickered a bit, and Kaji glared at him slightly, "Er, anyways… Maybe I'll take you the next time I get a vacation. Does that sound good to you?"

"Mhm!" Then Kaji looked to his left, noticing a silver chest under a tree. "Hey, is that thing the chest that you were trying to find?"

Zack's eyes followed the boy's direction, "Ah, it might be!"

"I'll get it!" Kaji ran over to the chest, prepared to open it.

"One, avoid unnecessary training!" Kaji froze, slowly looking around to find nothing there. He looked to Zack, who shrugged.

"…Weird…" Kaji tried to open the chest again.

"Two, protect Wutai at all costs!" Kaji was steadily growing annoyed, stomping his foot on the ground, looking around.

"Okay, REALLY?"

"Third… Little brats should learn not to steal from the Treasure Princess!" Kaji was suddenly shoved. He glanced up, spotting a girl with short black hair pulled back slightly by a white headband. "So back off, kid!"** {A/N: You know I had to add this. XD Yuffie makes everything so much more lively. Plus, she's around Kaji's age at this time, maybe about 12, so it's interesting to hear HER call him a kid.}**

"I'M the kid? You don't look any older than me!" Kaji nearly hissed.

"What do you want now, Yuffie?" Zack groaned.

"I am so older than you, and I'm not a kid! This is mine! That treasure is going to help restore Wutai to its further glory!"

Kaji was stunned when he heard 'Wutai' come out of her mouth, "B-But Zack needs the treasure to give to Shinra!" Yuffie just pushed him aside and then opened the chest, both children peering inside. Seconds later, two groups of experiments that resembled a pallid of wasps along with a group of ostrich-like experiments swarmed from the chest, causing them both to scream.

Zack raced to the aide of the children, "Hang on!"

Kaji slid back slightly from the creatures that drew closer, and then held up his hand in defense, "G-GET AWAY!" Flames spewed from his hand, and the wasps burned to a crisp before disintegrating. Zack was wide-eyed.

"K-Kaji! Open your eyes!" Kaji opened one eye before looking around. All of the creatures were lying on the ground—charred.

"WHOA…"

Yuffie practically clung to the boy, "My hero~" Kaji's face went crimson.

"How'd you do that?" Zack exclaimed.

"W-Wait… I-I did this…?" Kaji glanced down at his slightly burned left hand, "…Holy Jenova, I DID do it…"

"So, you just used fire magic and you didn't even know how?" Yuffie asked.

"I-I guess I did…"

"…Well, that's surprising…" Zack mumbled before going through his cell phone and distancing himself from the two.

"You'd be great as Wutai's mage!" Yuffie beamed.

"M-Mage? But I don't even know how I was able to do that, there's no way I could be a mage of anything!"

"Trust me; you'd be great for Wutai! I'm their leader's daughter—being traditional is so ridiculous, you'd make a great change!"

"N-No, I have to decline…"

Yuffie pouted, "Awww, c'mon!"

Zack was in the distance, now on the phone, "Cissnei, it's Zack. What do you know about natural elements?" A reply, "Well, it's like this… Kaji was able to use a fire spell without the use of Materia." Another reply, "…I need to try and figure out how he channeled it, so I'll try to take him on more missions another time."

"Hey, ugly SOLDIER dude!" Zack glanced up at the sound of Yuffie's infamous call to him, "Get this kid to agree to become a Wutai mage! He's being stubborn!"

"But I already said NO," Kaji snapped, "Sorry, but I have my own reasons to dislike Wutai. I don't WANT to join, and whether or not you're the leader's daughter, you can't order someone to join your clan. Okay, Yuffie?"

Complete silence.

"I want…" *_Sniff*_ "A mage…"

Kaji blinked a few times, "U-Um-"

Yuffie ran off in crocodile tears, "Wahhhhhh, you're so mean, Kaji!"

"Wha-Yuffie!" Kaji sighed a bit, "I made her cry, didn't I…?"

"Oh, don't worry about her, Kaji. Yuffie always pulls this kind of act. She'll be coming right back soon enough to try and con you."

Kaji seemed a bit confused, blinking a few times as he gazed in the direction that Yuffie had run off in before glancing back up at Zack.

"Then this is… normal?"

"Well, I wouldn't jump right to normal in this case, but it's normal for her. Trust me, she's gonna be back."

"Maybe when she does, we can be friends for real."

"…Well, enough of this. Let's keep going and see if we can find the real chest." Zack began walking ahead and Kaji trailed behind once again.

_**"**__**How **__**is **__**it **__**that **__**a **__**mere **__**child **__**was **__**able **__**to **__**access **__**such **__**advanced **__**fire **__**spells **__**without **__**the **__**use **__**of **__**Materia?**__**"**_

_** "Such is the power that reigns and boils in his blood—in his DNA, even. The child has begun to progress tremendously…"**_

_** "What will happen to him now?"**_

_** "His DNA has become significant. Now, we must channel his flames and strengthen him if we wish to complete our goal."**_

"Hey, do you want me to finish up here?" Kaji snapped out of it and glanced up at Zack before nodding a bit, "You look out of it. Are you tired, or do you just have a lot on your mind right now?"

"…A little bit of both…"

"It's not about what happened with Yuffie, is it?" Kaji shook his head.

"It's more than that…" Zack sighed.

"Okay. Wait right here for me. I'll be right back," As Zack distanced himself again, Kaji took a seat in the grass.

* * *

><p>The wind was steadily picking up, the grassy plains appearing much calmer despite the experiments that were running amuck. It seemed almost too tranquil.<p>

Kaji continued gazing up at the azure sky, thoughts filled with everything that there was to offer: a roof over his head, the friends he was making, the tiny family that he was becoming a part of… and then there was himself.

There was so much more beyond his tiny world that he couldn't bring himself to understand at only eight.

He reached into his pocket and then glanced at Satsuki's lucky stone.

_"__I__'__ve __got __all __the __luck __that __I __need __now__… __So, __you __should __hold __on __to __it. __Okay?__"_

"Satsuki…" He held the stone up to the sunlight, a smile creeping onto his face. "…Maybe I don't need luck either. I can bring it to you now… I'll bring you much better luck without having a stone. Would you like that?"

* * *

><p><strong>And so ends chapter 5!<strong>

**Satsuki: So, now Cissnei knows about Kaji.**

**Kaji: That makes... Aerith, Cloud, Cissnei, and Yuffie the canon characters that are in on this.**

**Kazuki: -Looks back to the ending portion- I'm sensing romance in the making.**

**Satsuki: -Blushes-**

**Kaji: ...I don't get it.**

**Kazuki: -_-' Gosh, maybe we should name you "Klueless Kaji".**

**Satsuki: ...Misspelled "clueless".**

**Kazuki: -_- It's intended!**

**Me: ANYWAYS. ^_^ Read, review, critique, and no flames! Leave that to Axel!**

**Axel: 0_o Wrong game.**


	7. The Town of Snow Part 1

**I was originally planing on updating yesterday, but... ****I, um, kinda underestimated just how much I had to type out first. This is one of my longest chapters, but it's also one of my favorites for some reason. ^_^ Oh, and I've finished writing out the first story, so now I just have the issues of typing it while working on the sequel, which will be TONS better than this story by my standards, for this is particularly a prequel.**

**But here, I reveal that all of you who guessed... were PARTIALLY correct. ^_^**

**Kaji: What, we don't get a say in this?**

**Me: GO BACK TO YOUR CORNER!**

**Kaji: -Rolls eyes, then obeys-**

**Me: ... -Nervous expression- ^_^''' R-Read and review?**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 6:<strong>_

"What? You want to go back to the slums already?"

"Mhm."

"Is there a reason why you're so adamant on returning there?" Kaji held up the stone to Zack.

"…I want to bring Satsuki good luck."

"…Ohhh, so THAT'S what this is about! Little Kaji's found his first crush~"

"What's a crush?" Kaji asked.

"Basically, um… How do I…? Where do I begin…?" Zack shrugged, "You like Satsuki, right?" Kaji nodded, "Okay, um… How did you act around her before we left the slums last time? Did you two share any interactions?"

"Interactions? Um… well… She…" His face reddened a bit, "W-When that guy Kazuki was throwing stones at me… I remember Satsuki holding me close to try and shield me from them…"

"She protected you."

"And… right before we left, she gave me her lucky stone because she said that she had all the luck that she needed."

"…So THAT'S it! That's so cute~"

"W-What is?"

"Oh, nothing~" Zack grinned, "I'll gladly take you to the slums so that we can visit Satsuki and Aerith again."

* * *

><p>~Sector 5 Slums~<p>

Kaji ran ahead of Zack, occasionally glancing back at him in order to tell him to move faster. Zack just brushed it off, and Kaji would continue to move ahead—until he nearly crashed into someone. His eyes went wide when he caught sight of the person he nearly ran into.

"…YOU."

"K-Kazuki?"

"So, we meet again, you little brat," Kazuki hissed, eyes narrowing, "Never thought that you would have the audacity to show your face in my presence."

Kaji took a few steps back, "L-Look, Kazuki, I-I'm sorry about what happened last time, I-I just-"

"Well, look who's finally making REAL words. It's a real shame that you didn't give the whole 'I'm sorry' bit before all of this, because now I'm gonna have to-" Before Kazuki could finish his sentence, he had been grabbed from behind—being lifted by his shirt off of the ground.

"You're going to have to do what to my kid?" Kazuki stared into aggravated Mako-infused eyes, fear building in his own, "I don't think that you'd want to consider completing that sentence unless you want to be tossed in front of the next train, Kazuki."

"HELP, SOMEONE HELP! THIS BIG GUY IN SOLDIER IS THREATENING TO HARM ME!"

"…Wuss…" Kazuki froze, "I hope that you don't think that I'm scared of a kid as scrawny and as arrogant as you are."

"Y-You SHOULD fear me! I'm gonna be the hero of Wutai! I'll atone for my father's death, and I'll kick all of you SOLDIER operative straight into the depths of Hell!"

"Well, that's some dream you have for such a tiny boy… To be honest, your thoughts are no different from your princess's," Zack sighed, "Look, I don't have all day, so apologize to Kaji, and I'll let you off easy so that we can be on our-"

"NO! He should be apologizing to me—the Wutai way!"

"Oh yeah? And what's the Wutai way?"

"In the case of a warlord's son like me, it's to inflict something of equal damage!" Kaji just shook his head in response.

"…You lay so much as one finger on my kid, you'll lose it."

"Zack, just let him go," Kaji just grinned at the sound of her voice.

"A-Aw, but Aerith-!"

"He'll learn," Aerith continued, "He will. Please, just give him a chance by letting him go free this time."

"…" Zack set the boy on the ground, "You're just lucky that she saved you. Now LEAVE."

Kazuki glared over at Kaji, "This is FAR from over, just so we're clear!" Then he ran off.

"Let me know if he bothers you again, Kaji," Zack began, "I'll put that little Wutai reject in his place."

"Okay…" Aerith glanced over at him, wide-eyed. Kaji just glanced back over at her and smiled, "Hi, Aerith…"

She smiled back, "Nice to see you again, Kaji."

* * *

><p>"So Zack, what brought on a visit?" Zack and Aerith were trailing behind Kaji, who was leaping over small stones.<p>

"Kaji asked me to bring him. He said that he wanted to come back to try and bring Satsuki some sort of good luck."

"Aw, it's young romance in the making."

"From the way he was acting, it appears so in my opinion…" Zack grinned, "I just hope that he doesn't go and get his little heart crushed so quickly."

"Satsuki's a good girl, I doubt that she'd try to hurt him like that."

Kaji glanced back at the two once he had approached the church doors, smiling, "Come on, let's go inside!"

Aerith giggled, "I'm just glad that he finally started talking."

"He did right after we left last time. But… he's still not eating much, and it's starting to concern me. What if he never DOES eat? He'll end up hurting himself more if he doesn't have any energy…"

"ZACKKKK!" Kaji half-whined, "Come on, come on, I wanna go say hi to Aerith's flowers!" Just as Kaji was about to open the church doors, they opened, nearly hitting him in the face. Out stepped Satsuki, who jumped at the sight of the younger boy.

"O-Oh, Kaji! I didn't know you were back so soon," He waved shyly at her, "I was, um… praying in the church…" He noticed the melancholic expression on her face, blinking a few times.

"Oh, Satsuki, so you WERE here," Aerith called, approaching the girl, "I'm sorry that I'm so late, but I ran into Zack and Kaji on my way here."

"It's okay…"

"Something the matter?" Zack asked, "You look upset."

Satsuki immediately perked up, "Oh, no, I'm fine! I was just thinking about some things, no trouble at all!"

Kaji just stared at her, "…"

"Satsuki, I don't mean to impose on you, but do you think you can watch Kaji for a while? I needed to get some more shopping out of the way while I'm here," Zack asked.

"Oh, I don't mind… provided that I get something in return."

Zack sighed, "Okay, what do you want from me? Money, power, to use me as a lapdog or something?"

"Nope, I just want 100 Gil."

"All right away?"

"Precisely."

Zack muttered under his breath as he fumbled through his wallet for money, and Kaji heard the words 'getting gyp'd by a nine year old' by coincidence. Well, maybe it wasn't a coincidence. Zack handed over the payment to the girl, then thought again, handing Kaji about half of the amount he had given to Satsuki.

"Here, so you can buy something that you want too. Don't lose it, okay?" Kaji nodded, and Zack ruffled the boy's head a bit. "You be good. I'll be back later," Then he and Aerith went off to the market.

"So, what do you want to do first?" Kaji shrugged, "…We could just roam the slums for now if you want."

Kaji didn't object.

* * *

><p>The two remained in silence as they made their way through the slums. Kaji was mentally trying to form words… now what the heck were the right ones? And around HER at that?<p>

"Sa… Satsuki…" She had paused mid-walk, and he felt heat rising to his cheeks, "U-Um, I… Why were you… praying at the church earlier?"

"…You can talk…"

"C-Can you answer my question?"

"…I… I was praying because I chose to, to wish someone well. Someone who recently departed this world," Kaji glanced over slightly and noticed how visibly shaken she was, "…Someone… who shouldn't have gone away just yet…"

"…Satsuki…" She turned around and smiled at him, causing Kaji to just stare.

"Don't worry about me, okay?"

"That's like asking me to let you suff—actually, it IS asking for me to let you suffer!"

"Really, I'm okay. It's nothing," Satsuki continued walking ahead, and Kaji paused, glancing over at scraps of metal—something was glowing under them.

_A glowing rock…? That's something you don't see every day…_ "Hey, Satsuki, check that out!"

"Hm?" She came to his aide and glanced in the direction of the glow as well, "I think that's a summon stone."

"A summon stone? What's that?"

"Some stones like that harbor creatures that can be tamed and used as allies to whomever so tames the beast inside. Maybe that belongs to Zack."

"You think?" Kaji picked it up and stared at it. He began to hear low growls behind him, and he and Satsuki immediately whirled around. There stood a group of creatures—experiments.

"W-What are they doing here?"

"Hopefully, not planning to feed on us!" Kaji stepped in front of Satsuki, eyes narrowing, "I can handle them!" He charged forward.

"K-Kaji!" Kaji could sense the flames erupting from his blood as the creatures turned all of their attention to him.

_O' Holy flame, bright as day…_

_ Grant me the strength of Dante's Inferno…_

_ Present me with the guidance of the Gods…_

_ Set me free!_

The stone let out a ray of light, and Kaji let out a gasp as the light engulfed the entire area.

* * *

><p><em>Fire… What is this…?<em> The bright embers stung his eyes a bit from the intensity.

A claw extended towards him…

* * *

><p>"Kaji, c'mon, wake up!" Kaji jolted up, panting before glancing up at Satsuki, "Are you okay?"<p>

"Y-Yeah, just a bit-" Kaji gazed around his new surroundings—the entire area was cold, abounded in white. He was a bit stunned, "…Wow… everything's so white here…"

"Yeah, I know… I think this is called snow or something."

"It's pretty, but it's cold…"

"Well, I doubt that we're going to be able to warm up by just sitting here," She held a hand out to him, smiling. Kaji reached up and grabbed her hand, "so, let's try to figure out what's going on."

"Okay."

Kaji was staring down at the summon stone. It had ceased glowing and retained an odd crimson essence, but still remained the source of their sudden teleportation.

How, that remained unexplained.

Why, yet another story.

"I still wonder how we could have possibly ended up in a place like this," Satsuki stated, "in the mountains, where the snow gently cascades across them…"

Kaji blinked, his face reddening a bit, "U-Um…"

"O-Oh, sorry… I've been reading a lot of poetry, moment of relapse," Kaji heaved a sigh before staring at the smoky air that had suddenly come out of his mouth. He paused before repeating the process again.

"Whoa! I can see my breath, so cool!"

Satsuki grinned, "Wow, you're no different from a kid at the candy store when it comes down to simple stuff like this…" She turned away, "Must be nice…"

"What do you mean?"

"…Nothing."

"…"

"H-Hey," She began, quickly dodging the subject, "check out that place up there! It looks like some sort of tunnel!"

_She's trying to dodge the question, isn't she…?_

"Wanna see where it leads?"

"…Sure, why not?" Satsuki ran ahead, and Kaji just shook his head before trailing behind her, "Look, Satsuki, is something the matter?"

"What're you talking about?"

"You've been acting depressed, and, well… you keep dodging every question that I throw at you."

"…I'm fine."

"No, you're not… I know you aren't…"

"…"

"Please, talk to me. You can trust me, Satsuki."

"…Okay, so, it's like this-"

"Intruders in the mountains! Seize them at once!" Satsuki and Kaji glanced back at the tunnel entrance and spotted a group of guards—SOLDIER infantrymen. Then they glanced back at one another.

"Should we run?" Satsuki asked.

"Without a doubt."

The children dashed towards the exit on the opposite end of the tunnel, and the infantrymen gave chase, firing bullets at will.

Though, apparently they were still at Novice rank, for every shot flew directly past the children.

"Geez, even I'M a better shot than most of these lowlifes! And I'm only NINE!" Satsuki exclaimed.

"We need to make a plan!"

"Right now?"

"We're running from a large group of SOLDIER infantrymen with our lives at risk before we can even hit the stages of solitary life! Why not?"

"…I didn't get a word that you just said about the bouts of life, but okay! Any bright ideas, then, Mr. smarty-pants?"

"Um…"

"KAJI!" Satsuki half-whined at the boy.

"Did you want something other than 'don't stop running'?"

"YES!"

"Uh, um, okay… Got it! We have to split up!"

"Split up? Are you out of your mind?"

"Do you want to get shot to death?"

"No!"

"Then trust me! I'll break left, and you go right!"

"Great! Wait, do you mean my right, or-?"

"YES, Satsuki!" Kaji glanced up, "I see a light; that has to be the exit! Whatever happens, we duck, dodge, and try to find a safe haven!"

"Got it!"

When they exited the tunnel, both ran in opposite directions, dodging two stray bullets in the process. Kaji noticed Satsuki dash towards what seemed to be a bath-house and ran towards a group of shattered homes, hiding behind one as the infantrymen exited.

"They've gone and split up somewhere… Off with you, find them at once!" The infantrymen split into groups of two, and Kaji scooted back a bit. His nails dug into the plywood, his breaths shaking a bit. Out of nowhere, he felt someone cover his mouth and let out a muffled yell.

"Shh, Kaji, it's me," Kaji paused and then glanced up at the spiked blonde.

"Cloud?"

"Well, look who's talking."

"What're you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing—I'm here on work."

"…I don't know how I ended up here, but I'm with a friend. We had to split up."

"Where's Zack?"

"The slums…"

"Look, you need to lay low here. I can get in contact with Zack for you. Find your friend and then both of you need to hide."

"What am I supposed to do with all these infantrymen running around?"

"Improvise. You carry a connection to SOLDIER now; I'm sure you're smart enough to figure out how to escape them."

"But…"

"Trust me," Cloud turned to leave, and Kaji peered out slightly, "Hey, guys, I'm not sure that they're here anymore. Maybe they retreated."

"Without passing us by?"

"Didn't you pay attention? Those kids weren't normal at all—they dodged every shot that we fired at them. They might have powers from enhanced Materia."

"…Good point."

"I'll call in some back up, be right back," Cloud walked away, dialing Zack's phone.

* * *

><p>"I've got a gift for you, Aerith~" Zack heard his phone ring, "…DAMN!" He picked it up and answered, "Cloud, I'm kinda in the middle of something right now, what do you want?"<p>

"Oh, sorry that I'm interrupting your love-making," Zack bit his lip, "I wanted to let you know something. I'm on a mission in Modeoheim."

"Hm, yeah?"

"…And Kaji is here with a friend. They're both on a run from infantrymen."

"Kaji and Satsuki are in Modeoheim?"

"You need to get here before the others catch on and try to hunt them down like Chocobos on the field."

"…Hold it together. I'll be there."

* * *

><p>Kaji waited for the guards to begin leaving the area to return to meet their commanding officer. <em>Where are they going? Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter much… <em>He raced towards the bath-house, opening the rusted doors, closing them behind him. They nearly fell off the hinges.

The area… deserted. There were loose steam pipes and no running water. To top it off, there was a faint odor of fairly old urine.

…Oodles of fun.

"What kind of bath-house IS this…? There isn't even anyone here…" He spotted a wheel in the distance, "Hm… maybe that goes to one of the pipes… but it's not any of my business. Better dig a little deeper and go find Satsuki."

* * *

><p>"SOLDIER First Class, Zack Fair, sir!"<p>

"Shorthand for me what's going on here," Zack replied.

"Sir, yes sir! There are currently two young intruders within Modeoheim interfering with mission briefs!"

"And their whereabouts?"

"Unknown, sir!"

"Ah, I see… Then let me handle things from here."

"Alone, sir?"

"Hm, good point… Cloud."

Cloud remained punctual, "S-Sir?"

"You're going to be my back-up."

"M-Me?"

"That's right. Let's go. The rest of you can head back to Shinra—this should be over quickly with the two of us around."

"But the children—"

"Do you DARE object to your commander—a First Class no less?" Zack smirked. Oh, how he enjoyed using his rank to his advantage…

"…No, sir."

"Then be on your way."

"Sir, yes sir!"

With that, Zack and Cloud began braving the Modeo ravine.

"Remember this? It's where we met for the first time," Zack stated.

"You know I do, Country Boy," Zack grinned at the nickname, "Hey, Zack, so why'd you pick me to come along?"

"…Because you know about Kaji as well as I do. So, tell me what's REALLY going on here."

"Kaji said that he didn't know how he and Satsuki wound up here. Now that the other infantrymen have already left the premises where he was, there's a good chance that he went off to search for her. Do you have any ideas on where they went?"

"…If I'm right, then he's in the place that I have in mind."

"And where's that?"

"Do you remember that bath-house?"

"Yeah, why do you—…Zack, you seriously think they went to the bath-house to hide? That's the most obvious spot in the WORLD."

"It's just… I just know that he's there somehow. It's sort of like the intuition that I had with Angeal before."

"Only one way to find out… right?"

"Exactly," Zack pushed the doors open.

* * *

><p>Kaji stumbled upon what appeared to be the only working bath in the entire facility. He made his way over to the water and traced his fingers along the water before cringing, "Hot…" Just then, experiments spawned from the water, and Kaji let out a yell. They began swarming towards him, "T-They look like… bullfrogs!" He sighed, clenching his fists.<p>

"Incoming! I'm bringing the thunder!" Kaji glanced up in time to see streaks of lightning rain down and destroy the creatures.

He blinked a few times, "Yikes…"

"Hey! Kaji! You doing okay?" Kaji smiled when he looked towards the stairs.

"Doing fine! Thanks, Satsuki!" He joined her up above, "So, how did you manage to do that anyways?"

She grinned, holding up two orbs—one yellow, one red, "These Materia were just lying around, so I decided to put them to good use."

"Wouldn't someone be mad that you took their Materia?"

"Not if they just left it lying around as if it were nothing. It's plain irresponsible if you ask me," Kaji shook his head as she pocketed the Materia, "Come on, let's go deeper inside of the bath-house!"

"No… Zack is coming to get us; we should wait for him to get here."

"It could take him FOREVER! Come on, let's go! Please? PLEASSSEEE?"

"…If you want to go, then go ALONE, because I'm just ready to go home!" Satsuki flinched from his sharp tone.

"…Fine, I will."

"Great."

"Fine."

"GOOD!" Then she ran off. Kaji nearly punched a wall, taking a seat down on the steps, "She makes me so MAD sometimes…!" Then he remembered the expression on her face, "…I can't believe I said that to her so bluntly… How many people am I gonna end up hurting…?"

_**Kaji stared at the charred scientist on the ground. He was completely still… This was the very man that had tried to channel his flames…**_

_** And now he was dead.**_

_** Dead from a fiery death.**_

_** "Do not fret, KAJI. This man was utterly foolish for attempting to train your strength at such low levels. There are people like him that will underestimate your abilities and push you to test them… That is why it is best that you don't interact with them—remain here with your creator."**_

Kaji clutched his head slightly. Then the door opened from below and he noticed Zack and Cloud run inside.

"Kaji, there you are!" Kaji slowly got to his feet and then ran over to the two, "Are you okay?"

"Mhm… I'm okay…"

"Good… That's so good…" Zack pet the boy's hair a bit, "Where's Satsuki?"

"Um, she… she went deeper into the bath-house."

"With all of those Genesis copies running around, who knows how far she could have gotten," Cloud stated.

"I'll go see if I can track her down," Zack looked the boy in the eyes, "Kaji, I want you to wait here with Cloud until I come back."

"But Zack, I wanna go!"

"It's too dangerous. Please, just wait here…" Once Zack had gone to the boiler room despite protests, Kaji sighed.

"Why do you even want to go?"

"…I need to apologize to Satsuki… I'M the reason why she ran off in the first place… I feel guilty…"

"…Well, I'll let you in on something… If your friend is involved and I happened to look the other way…" Cloud turned away, his back to the boy, "Then would you think that you and I are in a position to judge?"

Kaji caught on, "Thanks, Cloud."

"Just try not to get too caught up."

"I won't," Cloud gently nodded as the boy ran off.

_**"You are much different from the average boy your age. Indeed, your body physically ages as if you were any other boy, but your blood… your DNA holds the key to creating a greater source of power."**_

Kaji nearly tripped down the stairs, gripping to the railing, "…What the heck is wrong with me…? I suddenly got dizzy…" He shook his head and continued down the stairs. There was steam embodying a vast majority of the boiler room, and Kaji managed to make out a man walking along large pipes—Zack. He slowly backed up until Zack had gotten to the next area.

_**"He's losing control!"**_

Kaji ran up the stairs on the opposite end of the room, trying to keep hot on Zack's trail.

_**"Such is the power of his DNA—his form can no longer contain it. We must take higher measures or the previous three years will have fallen apart…"**_

_** "What do we do, sir?"**_

_** "We will grant KAJI a new form… we will extract the genes of a SOLDIER member that has already been infused with Mako energy…"**_

Kaji nearly slipped on the icy pipes outside, but managed to sprint up towards the path that Zack had previous taken—the large pipes.

_**There was a small bottle labeled 'Fair, Zack' on the table, "Ah… A young SOLDIER prospect… perfect."**_

Kaji suddenly tripped over one of the loose sockets hanging from the pipe, falling to his knees. He let out a strained yell, clutching his head.

**"Restrain him and force him to consume this."**

_**There were flames spewing about the walls of white, and in the center of the room was a degrading young boy being held down, gagging on the unfamiliar substance that didn't belong to him.**_

_** He hated them.**_

_** He hated them all.**_

_** He wished them all dead…**_

_** He wished the WORLD gone…**_

Kaji's eyes went amber, and low growls filled the boiler room. He could sense flames only seconds later, and when he had peered closer, he saw that the entire boiler room was torched—burning.

What had he DONE?

* * *

><p>Zack found Satsuki staring out into the cracked ceiling, teary-eyed, "So this is where you were!"<p>

"…Who's… who's Angeal, Zack?" Zack stared at her.

"…He's an old friend of mine… Why?" Satsuki turned to face him and then held up a white feather.

"He said that…. you'd know what to do."

"You saw him?"

"Yeah… He was here, Zack."

"…How can that be? Angeal is-" Then Zack paused when an odd scent filled his nose, "…Hey, do you smell smoke?"

"No."

"…I do, and it doesn't seem to be that far off… C'mon, let's go check it out."

Zack reached out to open the door that would lead back to the boiler room, but paused when he felt heat behind it.

"What…?" He looked to Satsuki, "Whatever you do, stay close to me," Zack slowly opened the door, and burning plywood fell onto the pipes, "Fire? Wha-How did this HAPPEN?"

"Zack, look!" Satsuki pointed ahead. Zack glanced in her view and then caught sight of Kaji, caught in the midst of flames. Zack took off one of his gloves and covered his mouth and nose with it, racing towards the boy.

"Kaji?" The boy's eyes were amber, and he appeared to be gazing at the flames. Zack waved a hand in front of his eyes, and then Kaji snapped out of it, nearly collapsing. There was the sound of the ceiling crackling, "Aah!" Zack shielded the boy as more plywood began to fall onto the pipes. Kaji managed to remain calm as Zack lifted the boy up and dashed back towards the door, then passed out from the smoke.

"Are you okay?" Satsuki asked.

"Satsuki, here, use my phone to call Cloud—he's the first in my call list. Tell him that you and Kaji are trapped in the midst of flames and need help."

"But, what about you?"

"I'm gonna find a way out of here. Maybe I can somehow dim the flames using my Materia," Zack gently laid Kaji down, "If Kaji starts getting any worse, just call for me."

"Okay."

* * *

><p>Zack went through his Materia supply until he came across some blizzard spells, choosing to use them up to rid of the burning plywood on the pipes—he had to save the children first above all else. He peered down at the flames steadily rising.<p>

"…How could this have happened…?" He slowly backed up, going through his supply again, "Crap, I'm out of blizzard Materia…! What am I supposed to do now…?"

* * *

><p><strong>^_^ And that's the end of that!<strong>

**Kaji: Can we come out of the corners now?**

**Me: -Rolls eyes- Yes...**

**Kaji, Satsuki and Kazuki: -Come out of corner-**

**Kazuki: You would make the WORST Kindergarten teacher.**

**Me: -Evil look-**

**Kazuki: ...**

**Satsuki: ^_^''' Anyways... Now part of the epic hero tale-**

**Kaji: Not me, ZACK'S the hero here...**

**Satsuki: ...Okay, part of the story has begun to open up. ^_^ Read, review, critique...**

**Kazuki: And SAVE us, we're being tortured to death by a seventeen year old menace!**

**Me: ... -_-**


	8. The Town of Snow Part 2

**0_0 ...Why I suddenly decided to start updating this story again even though I've begun to dislike it after writing "The Distance Between Us", I will never understand.**

**But hey, maybe it's worth finishing...**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 7:<strong>_

Satsuki impatiently tapped her fingers against the floor, staring over at Kaji the entire time. He was gradually returning to reality, his breaths a bit strained.

"…Kaji… I can't help but feel like this is my fault…" She gazed at the white feather in her hand.

_"W-Who are you?" A man with short hair and a white angel wing turned to face her. Satsuki took notice that he was dressed similarly to Zack—he had to be in SOLDIER—and that he was steadily… degrading, she believed? His black hair appeared gray in the light hovering from the cracked ceiling._

_ "…Angeal."_

_ "That wing… is it… an angel's wing?" She continued, "Are you an angel?"_

_ "No… I'm no angel. I'm just… I'm a monster."_

_ "I doubt that you'd have such pretty wings if you weren't someone special. Would you really want to consider yourself a monster?"_

_ Angeal smiled a bit, "You greatly remind me of someone that I know," He turned away, "Listen, Satsuki. If you ever happen to meet a guy named Zack Fair, tell him that he'd know what to do when everything falls into place."_

_ Then Angeal lifted himself off the ground, flying off towards the skies. Satsuki watched as a single white feather gently drifted down and into her hands. She continued to gaze up at the cracked ceiling even after Angeal had disappeared from her view._

"Angeal… What should I do…?" A light wind picked up from the cracked ceiling in the distance, blowing the feather out of Satsuki's hands. It floated over towards Kaji's awakening form before gently landing on the boy's nose. Kaji twitched from the touch and sneezed, eyes darting open. Satsuki giggled, "Welcome back, little guy."

"Satsuki…" He got up, "Look, Satsuki, I'm really sorry about what I said-"

"You didn't do anything, it was my fault."

"Where's Zack?"

"…Um…"

Now Kaji was concerned, "…Where?"

"He's out there, trying to stop the fire!"

"Fire?" Kaji raced towards the pipes outside of the room, Satsuki hot on his tail.

"Kaji! Kaji, hold on!" She jerked him back by his arm. Kaji froze when he caught sight of the flames steadily growing below the pipes…

It all came back to him.

The flames had been born from his anger, his fear… his inner emotions. This fire had been the very epitome of his own weakness.

"…No… What did I…?" Kaji glanced over and saw Zack trying to ease through the flames below. Cloud was in the distance trying to toss Materia to him. Kaji's eyes nearly flew out of his skull when he noticed the flames growing. "ZACK, NO! DON'T DO IT! YOU'LL DIE BEFORE YOU COULD GET TO IT!" Zack glanced up at him. Kaji broke free from Satsuki's grip and free-fell towards the flames.

"KAJI!" Satsuki, Cloud and Zack shrieked in unison.

For a few seconds, there was complete and utter silence…

Then came distant chants, and the flames began emanating around the young raven, dispersing into his body. Kaji appeared fully in tact with the motions, his eyes shut and his innocent face void of emotions.

"What is he doing…?" Satsuki mumbled to herself.

"It's like he's… like he's sucking up the flames…" Cloud breathed out. Once all the flames had vanished, Kaji began panting, letting out slightly strained coughs. Zack immediately raced to his aide.

"Don't you EVER do that again, Kaji! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"I-I…" He was attempting to clear his throat.

"What's wrong, does your throat hurt?"

"He might have inhaled some of the smoke!" Satsuki called out. "That's dangerous; fire tends to give off toxins!"

"But I'm okay!" Kaji whined. "Really, I am!"

"Better safe than sorry. Come on, let's get back to the slums." Zack replied.

* * *

><p>~Sector 5 Slums: Aerith's House~<p>

"Well, the damage is minimal. All that he needs is fluids and he'll be back to normal before either of us could blink."

"Aerith, are you sure?" Zack asked, glancing over at the child. Said boy was hanging upside down off of the couch drinking a strawberry juice, eyes filled with curiosity. Satsuki was sitting on the couch, watching him.

"Positive. Actually, I'm surprised that it didn't deal more serious damage given that you found him unconscious through the midst of the flames."

"…He stopped the fire himself, and I've got half a mind that he's the one that actually started it all off. I'm not sure why or how, but something seems really off about all of this." Aerith and Zack glanced at him, and Kaji stopped drinking his juice.

"Why's everyone staring at me? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, honey, don't worry about it, you're okay." Aerith called. "Zack and I are just having a little discussion."

"Oh…"

"Aerith, can Kaji and I go back to the church?" Satsuki piped up.

"Don't stay out for too long, okay? It's been quite a day for you two."

"Okay!" Satsuki lightly pushed Kaji, and the boy flipped off of the couch, landing on his feet again. Kaji blinked a few times, wondering just why the room was suddenly spinning after the impact. "Be back soon!"

"And go STRAIGHT there and back, get it?" Zack called.

"We will!" The two called back before leaving the house.

* * *

><p>"Satsuki, what brought on wanting to go back to the slums' church?"<p>

"…Zack and Aerith were talking about you back there, treating you like you aren't a normal person…" Kaji thought a moment.

"Well… to be honest, I don't think I'm that normal either. Normal is boring anyways. Don't take what they said in a bad sense. They're just worried about me…" Satsuki remained silent even after they had entered the church. She was standing above the flowers, her hands folding across her chest—she was praying.

* * *

><p>"Aerith, I'm sorry, but it's time that I went back to SOLDIER's hands again…"<p>

"Will you be back soon?"

"For you…" He leaned forward, pressing his soft lips against hers. He pulled away, grinning ear to ear. "I'd always come back."

* * *

><p>"S-Satsuki, you… you never told me why you were so depressed…" Silence. "I want to bring you good luck too. Please… talk to me, Satsuki. I wanna help you."<p>

"…My mom, she…"

"Oh, your mom… She's sick, right?"

"She's dead… I haven't returned home since she died… It's been three days since that day… And I killed her… She was suffering so much… She was in so much pain that she… she told me to take her life, and if I didn't, she was going to make ME suffer more than I already was…! She… Kaji, she was peaking insanity, I-I…!" She looked to Kaji, tears forming in her eyes. "Please, don't-don't tell anyone about this! You can't!"

Kaji wrapped his arms around her, tears forming in his own eyes. "I promise you… I won't tell…" She broke down, sobbing into his shoulder.

Zack stood in the entrance, compelled by the scene he had stumbled upon.

* * *

><p>~Sector 5: Train Station~<p>

"What happened between you and Satsuki earlier?" Zack asked.

"…I can't tell you. It's a secret between friends."

"What? But we ARE friends, silly boy."

"I promised not to tell. She was really hurt…" He rested his head up against Zack's arm, sighing. "…Do you think that…. there's something wrong with me, Zack?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Satsuki said that you and Aerith were talking about me before we left, saying that I wasn't normal…"

"Kaji, there's no such thing as one person being 'normal' in this world. That's what makes everyone more interesting—we're all born differently, and no one is like everyone else in the world, not even twins or triplets. You're not normal. You're unique. More than likely, there's no one else out there like me or like you."

Kaji recalled the bottle with part of Zack's genes from the Mako surgery instead of continuing to carry his own DNA separately. The still-familiar sensation of mutilated DNA made him feel nauseous just from imagining the substance running through his veins like water.

Kaji covered his mouth. "…I don't feel so well…" Zack glanced down at him.

"Feeling nauseous? You look like you're going to throw up…"

"…I don't know…"

"You should lie down." Zack moved over slightly, and Kaji rested his head on the man's lap, trying to shake the images away. Then the man petted the boy's hair a bit. "Try to get some sleep. We'll be back in Midgar really soon."

"I'll try…" Kaji slowly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p><em><strong>"Is he still dealing with relapse?"<strong>_

_** "Indeed… he has been refusing to awaken, and his body levels are hardly stimulating due to his lack of nutrition. At this rate, his body will likely perish before the growth has been completed. How disappointing…"**_

_** "And what of that boy Zack Fair?"**_

_** "His DNA remains fully unaffected by the surgery—he will never know of what he has lost. All that he will understand in good time is that he has been a major contributor to our science without having to do a thing except follow his dreams and work for SOLDIER."**_

_** "I had been meaning to question. Why choose this boy's genes?"**_

_** "He is one of the youngest SOLDIER operatives on the force at age sixteen and already a second-class. And then there is KAJI, a boy of biologically five years of age, who will need young, strong genes to stimulate his current form. Zack's genes have done him justice—KAJI has begun taking the shape of a much younger version of the man whose genes he had ascertained."**_

_** "Will the genes hold?"**_

_** "Given the time he already has possessed the genes of the boy, they will likely support him until he perishes. That event, we are unable to control now that he carries a human soul. Still, no matter. We have all the time in the world to test his vitality…"**_

* * *

><p>Kaji jolted awake only to find that the sun was brimming through the nearby window. It was morning already. It had been mid-afternoon when they boarded the train back from the slums…<p>

"How long was I asleep…?"

"You were out for two days." Zack called, causing Kaji to look to his left. There he was, leaning up against the door. "But it's not like you missed all that much. Guess what though."

"What?"

"Cissnei pulled some strings, and we get to go to Costa del Sol."

"We're going to the beach?" Zack grinned the entire time those words formed.

"That's right. Are you all right with that?"

"Yeah! The beach sounds fun! When are we going?"

"As soon as we can pack."

"I don't have any clothes…" Zack held up a tote bag.

"You do now thanks to a generous donation from members of the Turks. Reno and Rude look forward to meeting you."

"Reno and Rude?"

"They're great guys, always together, trust me." Zack began. "You'd really like them. Now come on, let's get you out of those dirty clothes."

* * *

><p>"Zack, h-how do you work this thing?" For the past five minutes, Kaji had been fiddling around with a mechanism far beyond his knowledge—the shower.<p>

"…Forget it, just take a bath; we need to be on our way out of here today, no later." Zack went over to a group of bathtubs in the distance, turning the faucet to activate one of them. Kaji stared at the running water with wide eyes. "Get undressed."

"Okay…" Kaji stripped himself of his clothes and then Zack lifted him up, setting him inside of the oversized tub.

"Is the water too hot?"

"No, it's fine…" Zack scanned the room for an unused bar of soap. "On your right, tub furthest from the entrance…" Zack went towards Kaji's specified directions, and indeed found a bar of soap still in its container.

"Wow, that's impressive. How did you know?"

"It was a lucky guess."

"You never looked."

"Oh. Then I don't know." Zack began gently scrubbing the boy's back, bewildered by his next sight.

There were deep red scars on his back, but not from inflicted wounds—Zack could nearly see bones pop out from Kaji's abnormally thin form.

"Oh my god…" Kaji slightly glanced back at the man, fear heightening just from the sudden expression of his caretaker. "Kaji, w-why is this happening? Talk to me, please…" Kaji grew silent. "You have to go to a doctor, this is serious…"

Kaji jumped, moving away from Zack. "No! No, I can't!"

"Kaji, if you don't, you're going to get sicker, maybe even die!"

"Then I'll die!" Kaji retorted. "I'm never going back to doctors ever again!" Now Zack's temper was loose.

"There's no way in hell I'm letting you go through with that!" Zack pulled the boy out of the tub, Kaji flailing as he dressed him. "You are GOING to get help whether you like it or not!"

"N-NO!" Kaji attempted to run until Zack grabbed him by the arm, holding him in place.

"RIGHT NOW!"

* * *

><p>Zack practically dragged the boy into the streets (only after the two had to keep quiet while going through the halls of Shinra), Kaji screaming, pleading and crying the entire time. They soon arrived in front of a small business location entitled 'Dr. Kurosu, Local Physician'. "Ah, here it is…"<p>

"Let go!"

"Quiet!" Zack hissed, dragging Kaji into the area.

"Well, if it isn't Zack Fair! Good day to you, Mr. First Class!"

"Hey, Melena~" Zack beamed. "Your mom in?"

"Here for your annual?" The red-headed girl asked. She didn't appear to be any older or younger than Zack.

"Not yet. I'm actually here because of my boy, Kaji. Any chance you work with pediatrics?" Kaji glared at the red-head, trying to escape Zack's grip.

"Aw, I didn't know you had kids, Zack."

"He isn't my son, I'm just taking care of him."

"Funny, he looks so much like you." Melena glanced down at the boy again, smiling. "Hi there, Kaji. I'm Melena Kurosu."

"I don't care."

"Hey, that's NO way to speak to an adult!" Zack growled. "Sorry, Melena, he really didn't want to come, but I didn't give him a choice."

"Well, mom's busy with a patient in the back right now, so maybe I can take a look at Kaji for you."

"That'd be great!"

"Come on back." Zack dragged Kaji along. Kaji gripped to the wall, and Zack managed to pry him off, now carrying him.

"Look, don't make me level with you, or else you'll be trapped alone in Shinra with no one else around!"

"That's neglect; in other words, abuse!"

"I don't care." Zack mimicked the boy's previous tone. "So, get your act together or I'll MAKE you get your ass in gear, got it?" Kaji glared daggers at the man.

"Okay, so what seems to be the problem today, Kaji?" Melena asked. Kaji looked to Zack, arms folded across his chest.

"Why not ask HIM?"

"Because she asked YOU." Zack retorted, arms folded as well. Melena sighed.

"Please Zack… There's no reasoning with him at the moment…"

"…Get him to take off his shirt and you'll see what the problem is."

"Kaji, may I see?" Kaji fidgeted a bit. "I promise, I'm not going to do anything to hurt you." Kaji frantically shook his head, glancing at her white physician's coat. She immediately took the hint and then removed the coat. "Look, I'm not even a doctor anymore right now, I'm your friend! Does that help?" Kaji nodded a bit. "Now, can you show me your problem, please?"

"Um…" Kaji slowly removed his shirt.

"…Oh my…" Melena looked to Zack. "From what I can tell just by looking, this is a result of malnutrition. Has he been eating well?"

"…He keeps refusing to eat no matter how much I try to feed him, even if it's just small pieces of bread…"

"When did you first find him?"

"About a month ago."

"And he hasn't eaten much since then?"

"Not really…" Melena sighed. "Is there anything that I can do?"

"Other than force him to eat? Maybe I can help with that. You can give him vitamins that will help stimulate him and mix them with his drinks."

"I'll try ANYTHING if it means keeping him alive." Kaji was stunned by the words. "This kid, he… he's shown me what it's like to actually be a hero in a new light."

Melena smiled a bit. "I'll ready your prescription." Then she left.

"…I'll… I'll try to get better… I'll try to eat more… Just…" Kaji looked up at the man. "Just please don't leave me alone, Zack…"

Zack lifted the boy up. "Now, why would I do that?" Kaji buried his face in the man's chest.

"Because… I was always alone until you found me… I wanna stay with you…"

"Don't worry. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere. Okay? I'm not leaving you alone." Zack held him a bit tighter. "I promise."

"Zack?"

"Mhm?"

"I'm hungry."

"O-Oh! Okay, let's finish up here and go grab some breakfast, sound good?"

"Yeah!"

* * *

><p>"Okay, so, these are the pills—they're supplementary vitamins. Twice a day. Can you remember that?" Zack was staring down at something else besides the medicine capsule. "Zack, do you hear me?"<p>

"Mhm~" Kaji glanced up at him, then punched him in the shin, causing him to stumble a bit. "O-Ow! I-I heard her, geez! Vitamins, twice a day!"

"…You were staring at my chest again, you pervert!" Melena hissed, causing both boys to jump. "Get OUT!"

"Gladly!" Zack took the capsule, then grabbed the young boy and ran like hell.

* * *

><p>~11:42 A.M.~<p>

"I can't believe you ate six pancakes!" Zack exclaimed. "That's one more than MY usual amount!"

"…I told you I was hungry…"

"No surprise." Then Zack paused. "…Wait, you didn't force yourself to eat, did you?"

"No, Zack…"

"Here, let me see…" Zack went through to the capsule. He went over and bought a bottle of water from a stand. "Here, swallow the pill without biting and then drink." Kaji obeyed, the tasteless substance sliding down his throat. "Now, are you ready to go and meet up with the others?"

"Mhm!"

* * *

><p><strong>...Yeah. 0.0 Hopefully I get around to finishing despite all the multitasking what with my stories... ^_^ On the plus, this summer shall be mine!<strong>

**Read and review! *Rolls eyes* And no flaming the OC.**


	9. What He Wanted

**Oh, look, chapter 8 now. 0_0 Either I really want to get this story finished on here (finished writing), or I have a lot of time on my hands despite it being my eighteenth birthday in two days...**

**Anyways, here you go. I have a lack of a description here compared to The Distance Between Us, to those who read this after coming from that. XD**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 8:<strong>_

"Hey, I'm here!" A man with spiked red hair wearing goggles just above his eyes glanced up at the call, smirking.

"Rude, check it out, yo, old Zackary's late again."

"Hm, not surprising…"

"Hey, at least I AM here!" Kaji glanced up at the men slightly and then clung to Zack's pants leg like a puppy.

"That your boy, Zack?" Rude asked. Kaji peered out and began staring at what he mentally called 'the hairless wonder' dubbed Rude. "He really does resemble you."

"Man, I've been getting those exact same words so much, it's like people are beating it into my head…" Zack glanced down at Kaji. "But yeah, this is him. Kaji, this is Rude…" He pointed to the red-head next. "And that's Reno."

"Nice to meet you, Kaji," Reno replied.

"S-Same to you, uh, Reno…"

"Cissnei arrive yet?" Zack asked. Kaji immediately perked up at the mention of her name—why he was always so thrilled every time one of Zack's female friends came up, he would never understand.

"Nah, she said that she had some last minute business to take care of before she'd come to meet us." Reno mumbled. "It's amazing how much that girl spends her time working like the Turk's lapdog."

"Well, at least I'd be able to keep on my toes while I'm working, unlike you two." The four glanced up, all wide eyed. Cissnei was absent of her usual black suit, clothed in a white sundress, her hair pulled back into a high ponytail. She blushed a bit. "Is it… too much? I really feel like it's too girly for me…" _**{A/N: Cissnei, my dear, that was the point. ^_^}**_

"Wow, Cissnei, you-you look…" Rude began.

"H-H-Holy…" Reno sputtered.

"Oh wow, Miss Cissnei, you look so pretty!" Kaji beamed, racing up to her. Cissnei smiled.

"Thank you, Kaji. That's very sweet."

"Zack, surprised you aren't all over her by now." Rude whispered.

"I have a girlfriend I love, why would I be? I don't wanna betray her…" Kaji noticed Cissnei's eyes sadden a bit before she began gathering her things.

"You guys ready to go? We've got a long boat ride ahead of us."

"B-Boat?" Kaji squeaked.

* * *

><p>Kaji never let go of Zack once the boat was in motion, trembling almost violently. "Kaji, calm down, will you? It's not like we're going to crash or anything, this isn't like that one cruise ship from over eighty years ago that sank…"<p>

"B-But what if we DO?"

"The odds of that happening are VERY slim—the workers here are professionals at what they do, just like how I'm a professional at combat."

"…We have a better chance of Genesis clones attacking us on the boat than we do experiencing the boat crashing. Relax. And stop clinging to me." Zack managed to pry the boy off.

"Y-You never said that we'd be taking a boat to Costa del Sol…" Zack cocked an eyebrow.

"That's because you never mentioned that you were scared of riding in a boat."

"I'm scared to fall in the water…"

"You're not gonna fall in the water, silly boy, we're pretty much safe, even out here on the deck." Kaji grew silent. Zack sighed and then lifted the boy up, walking a bit closer to the edge. Kaji clung to him. "There's nothing to be afraid of. See, look at this." Zack tugged on the bars before them, and Kaji glanced at them as well. "These metal bars right here are your support. The only way you could possibly fall into the ocean is if you chose to jump off of them, and you're not even tall enough to reach them without help yet. So you don't have anything to worry about. Okay?"

Kaji slowly nodded, glancing towards the ocean. Before his very eyes came tints of red, and he immediately looked away, burying his face in Zack's chest. "B-Blood…!"

Zack glanced down at the water as well. "…Where?"

"In the ocean!" Zack peered closer.

"I don't see anything, Kaji, and I'm looking as far as the Mako will allow." Kaji clung to Zack, his breaths shaking. "Kaji? Kaji! What's wrong?"

* * *

><p><em>…I can't hear Zack anymore… I wonder if I blacked out already…<em>

_ I could have sworn that I saw blood in the ocean, so it couldn't have been an illusion… There was clearly blood there…_

_ Maybe… it was mine?_

_ Maybe not; how would I be spilling blood when I haven't even been hurt?_

_ Everything feels real to me…_

_ Everything…_

_ Even that faint sound of a crying infant…_

* * *

><p>Kaji awoke in a small room, café eyes darting in all directions; the scent of the ocean filled his nose, and he noticed that the porthole was slightly opened—maybe he had been nauseous at a point. When he sat up, he felt his head collide with the upper bunk.<p>

"OUCH!" He groaned, rubbing his head. "Worst way in the world to wake up…" Then he took notice that he was alone in the tiny room. _Zack must have gone off somewhere… _Kaji got to his feet, almost immediately collapsing to his knees.

_**"KAJI!" Kaji jumped slightly and looked back. "You stay away from those pods, you will soil them!"**_

_** The harsh yells made him scurry away, back to his corner. He didn't attempt to ask for forgiveness for his mistake, whatever the mistake had been at the time. He didn't want to speak to any of their kind, the men in the white lab coats.**_

_** "Do NOT leave this room again!" Kaji curled up into a ball, his face sinking behind his knees. He heard the door slam.**_

Kaji shook his head, trying to regain control of his mindset.

_**He was scared of them all… so scared… They made him fear even trying to retort to their cruel remarks…**_

_** Just what had he DONE to deserve them?**_

"Stop it…"

_**Why did he have to constantly remain isolated?**_

"Please…!"

_**Was it because he wasn't supposed to have a heart of his own? Why was he the one chosen to act as His vessel?**_

"MAKE THESE PAINS STOP!" Kaji cried out as Zack had entered the room, wide-eyed from the boy's sudden yells. Zack grabbed hold of the boy, holding him locked in an embrace. Only then did Kaji realize that he was screaming—crying for someone to come for him.

"It's okay, it's okay… I'm here now, Kaji… I'm right here now…" Kaji burst into tears, letting out hysterical sobs. "Shh… It's all going to be okay…" He gently rocked the boy in his arms. "I'm so sorry…"

* * *

><p>Kaji had eventually calmed down, now back in bed. Zack had explained that he had collapsed from a mild shock and had to remain calm at all costs. Kaji knew the circumstances afterwards, but neglected to inform Zack on why or how he had wound up damaging himself yet again.<p>

"…Just take it easy from now on, okay?"

"I make no promises…" Kaji mumbled, causing Zack to instead roll his eyes. "…Hey, Zack… What were you humming before?"

"Before? When?"

"On our way back to Shinra, from the slums. I remember you were humming a bit… I really liked the tune…"

"Oh, that? Um, I made it up a long time ago." Zack began. "It's just something I hum to pass the time from some silly song..."

"Can you sing it for me?"

"H-Huh? Really?" Kaji gently smiled at him, nodding. Zack just sighed at this and then smiled back. "Okay, but it has to be quiet, it's getting pretty late out. And then we go to bed, okay?"

"Sir, yes sir."

Zack struggled at first to think of lyrics to go along with the familiar tune before finally just deciding to string together what came to mind as calmly as he could, almost as if the tune were meant to be a lullaby. Kaji grinned the entire time, appalled that he had possessed more of a talent than just being able to fight. _**{A/N: Believe it or not, the song that came to mind is a Japanese song by Zack's Japanese voice actor Kenichi Suzumura entitled-Knocking on the Mind. It's quite a beautiful song, and certain parts of the English lyrics actually did make me think of Kaji and Zack at the time. It's hard to find the song on YouTube, so I'd recommend hunting it down on Google. ^_^ If not, read the English lyrics.}**_

Soon enough, said boy had fallen asleep; Zack pulled the covers over him, gently ruffling the boy's hair a bit before proceeding to the top bunk.

"No more nightmares, okay?"

* * *

><p>"It's the beach! Beach, beach, beach, it's SO pretty!" Kaji beamed, trying to run ahead until Zack got a grip on his arm.<p>

"Hold on there, frantic, you have to put on sun-block first. You don't want to end up with sunburn, do you?"

"But I don't burn! I do well with fire!" Kaji whined.

"It doesn't matter." Zack took out a bottle of sun-block, applying the liquid upon the young raven's face, arms and legs a little at a time.

"Ugh, this stuff is so sticky! And it stinks!"

"There you go, all done! Go play. But be careful!" Kaji grinned and then dashed off, waving back at the man.

"See ya, Zack!"

"I see you two are doing okay now." Cissnei called from behind. Zack glanced back and then smirked at the now swimsuit-clad younger Turk member.

"So are you~" Cissnei glanced down at the man's black swimming trunks.

"…Hard."

"What?"_** {A/N: 0.o WHAT?}**_

"Nothing. Anyways, Reno and Rude are over at the bar and asked if you wanted to go and join them."

Zack glanced back in the direction where Kaji had run off. "…No, I'd better not."

"Well, this is a REAL first. I never thought that I would see the day that Zackary Fair turned down a drink."

"Hey, NO full name!" Zack sputtered. "Besides, I want to, but… I have to set a good example for Kaji, and having even one beach beer won't do that."

"Welcome to the leisurely world of adulthood/parenthood, population sixty-percent of the nation at the moment." Zack could easily tell that she was just pulling his leg. "Still, I'm glad to hear you say that. It's not easy to raise an eight year old at nineteen, especially if the child isn't yours."

"Boy, I'll say… It doesn't help that Kaji is dealing with mental and physical strains either…"

"That's probably why you're the right person for the job since you can work under pressure."

"…I don't know how long I can keep up hiding him from the others in SOLDIER. Even so… it's hard to take care of Kaji, but seeing him smile makes it worthwhile. Because of him, I'm… even considering leaving SOLDIER just to ensure his safety."

"But you've already come this far-"

"He's worth it to me."

"What about your dream? What about becoming a hero?" Cissnei blurted out.

"I already told you once; I can become more than a hero. I can become a hero without having to be involved with SOLDIER, even if I'm not famous. As a child, I never thought about anything more than being recognized and known like Sephiroth is, but having Kaji in my life has made me think differently about my own choices. I want him to see that there's more to a hero than fighting and being strong."

"Zack, there's no possibility that you'll be able to keep that promise. Even if something happens, you know that you're going to have to remain with SOLDIER and support them. It's not an option now that you've gotten this far."

"…I can't keep supporting just SOLDIER!" Zack exclaimed. "I have a child in my life now! HE'S what I have to be supporting!"

Kaji glanced up from his sand castle towards the faint arguing. He noticed that Zack was the one doing the arguing with Cissnei calmly responding.

"You said for yourself that you don't know how long you can keep raising Kaji inside of Shinra without anyone else understanding your actions. I was raised inside of Shinra all of my life, Zack, I know better than you just what Kaji is dealing with—being alone in a world like this is no joking matter, and only the strongest can hope to survive. If you get caught, he'll be taken into custody, maybe even KILLED if it comes down to the order of the president; what would you do when you're caught with him?"

"…IF I'm caught with Kaji, then… I'll relinquish my position as a First-Class, leave SOLDIER and take Kaji with me."

Kaji was wide-eyed by the words he caught. Zack was willing to give up on his dream to become a hero… all for him.

_He can't mean that…_

Cissnei, bewildered by the choice he had made, walked away without another word, and Zack watched as she returned to the bar. Then he looked over at Kaji, who immediately looked away upon meeting his gaze, and made his way over to him, taking a seat in the sand next to him.

"Hey, little guy." Kaji glanced up at him, then back down to the sand castle. "Listen… Can we talk about something?"

"Mhm."

"Okay, that's good… Don't worry about what Cissnei and I were having a disagreement about. It was just-"

"I already know that it was a discussion about me... You don't have to sugar-coat it." Kaji continued working on his sand castle. Zack sighed.

"How much did you hear?"

"…I heard way more than I should have, that's all that I can say…" He looked to the man again. "You don't have to give up on your dream because of me, Zack… I know how hard that you've worked all of this time to become a First-Class… If anything, I don't want you to be bothered with me—I'd only be in your way-"

"Don't you dare! Don't even think about saying that to me!" He snapped slightly. "You are NOT in my way, I CHOSE this life!"

"You only saved me in the first place because I was in your way! You acted like a hero then! You can BE a hero without me imposing on you all the time, so why do you keep me around-?"

"I keep you around because you're important to me!" Zack exclaimed. "You've shown me the ideals of being a hero without having to fight or be among higher maintenance SOLDIER members. I want you to learn it properly too."

"…What…?"

"I want… I want to be someone that you can depend on. Kaji… I gave it a lot of thought, and now… I want to be a father. I want to be YOUR father."

_**"You have no true heart left to feel with, KAJI; therefore, you're not meant to love anyone. All that you're meant to do throughout your shortened life is search and destroy people's hearts—to crush them under your own feelings. And then there's the DNA of the man you possess, the soul of Zack Fair… Even so much as looking into the face of this man will seal his fate. And yours."**_

Kaji slowly shook his head. "Y-You CAN'T, Zack!"

"Why not?"

Kaji slowly got to his feet, tears rolling down his face. "Because I… I can't risk taking more from you that I never meant to have!" Then he ran off, stepping over the sand castle and crushing it under his feet. _**{A/N: Again, sand castles here are representing "innocence", and in this scene, Kaji is basically showing guilt.}**_

"K-Kaji!"

* * *

><p><strong>...I feel like I made Kaji seem inhuman to some, and TOO human to others. He acts so full of emotion whenever he's scared and even when he's happy, but he's scared to show it. <strong>

**0_0 He's actually becoming one of my favorite original characters.**

**READ AND REVIEW! ^_^**


	10. Two Sides

**... ^_^ More inspiration into finishing this story...**

**But the chapter after this will be the last. Thank goodness I picked it up again...**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 9:<strong>_

Several minutes had passed before Zack entered the local bar, immediately going to the table where Reno, Rude and Cissnei sat.

"Finally decided to join us, huh, 'fair weather'?" Reno joked, waving a half full beer bottle around.

"What about Kaji?" Rude asked.

"…Kaji ran away from me, saying that he didn't want to take more than what he already has." Zack grabbed one of the bottles of beer and shook it around a bit. "I don't even know what he meant when he said that."

"That's kids for you, especially the really complicated ones like Kaji—cute, confusing, and a pain in the ass all around. That's why I don't want 'em." Zack clenched his fist. Reno took another swig of the liquid. "Look at it this way with the kid. Everyone makes mistakes, yo."

Zack slammed the bottle down, shattering it—and the beer—everywhere. "Don't you FUCKING call him a mistake!" Rude immediately restrained him.

"Wasn't calling the kid a mistake. Let me ask you something, Zack. Do you think that Kaji understands just what your ambitions are to the fullest? If he claims that he does, maybe it's your ambitions themselves that need some adjustment."

"What does that MEAN?"

"Cissnei told us everything before you got here. There's no way for you to leave SOLDIER the way that you are now. You're starting to forget why you came."

"Just because I have a child in my life doesn't mean that I've abandoned my goals!" Zack roared. "I DO want to become a hero, but there's more than one way to become one!"

"You better ante up while you still can and make your final decision. It's either the kid… or your dream. I don't think that this is going to be a case where you can have both." Reno took his seat again. Zack's eyes narrowed. "Someone get me another beer."

* * *

><p>Kaji stared at the summon stone in his hands, heaving a sigh. "What was I supposed to say back there…? I finally meet someone that wants to accept me as their child, and I end up biting off more than I can chew… But I can't risk the thought of taking more of Zack's DNA by interlocking with him… What am I supposed to do…?" The stone tinted red, and Kaji gasped, his eyes immediately going amber.<p>

_"Release your inner rage, Kaji… Those that you deem unworthy shall follow at your whim… Do it…"_ Kaji lost control of his body all too quickly out of sheer weakness. _"Kill them, my young vessel. Kill them all."_

* * *

><p>Zack was exiting the bar when he noticed flames further down the shoreline. There were currently tourists and residents fleeing in all directions.<p>

"What the hell…?" He ran ahead towards the flames. When he got closer, he noticed a pillar of flames being summoned from a red orb—a summon stone. And being consumed within the pillar was an unconscious boy floating upward, as if the flames itself had possessed his body. "KAJI!"

Amber eyes weakly darted open, now locked on nothing in particular. **Zack? Zack! Please help me!**

Kaji's mouth hadn't moved—Zack knew that the words were coming from the boy's thoughts. "You have to meet me halfway here, how can I help?"

**I have just enough strength left to make a path, but I'll lose whatever control I have left! You have to grab the summon stone!**

Zack smirked. "SOLDIER is all about taking risk! Don't worry, I'll free you long before you start going berserk!"

**…Okay… I trust you… **

Kaji slowly closed his eyes again, and then the summon stone began emanating a white glow. The fire pillar slightly dimmed in time for Zack to take the opportunity to race inside and grab the stone. Just as he was about to grab it, however, the stone acted on its own and transported him.

* * *

><p>Zack opened his eyes to a realm of flames—an obvious signature of a legend known as Hellfire. "…MAN, am I glad that I'm not having any problems with heat right now-" He glanced down and noticed that he was back in his First-Class SOLDIER uniform. "Oh. That's why."<p>

_"So, you've come."_ Zack glanced back, a glint of malice in his expression. A rather formidable beast with a large horn in the middle of its forehead was standing not too far off, a boy gripped in one of his large claws. In comparison to Zack, who stood an equally formidable 185 centimeters, the creature wasn't too large. _**{A/N: ...I just remembered when I fought Ifrit, he wasn't too much taller than Zack was, then I looked up Zack's real height. 0_0 6'0.}**_

"You're Ifrit… Let go of Kaji!"

_"Not a chance. This boy is carrying something that belongs to me, and I request that it is returned at once."_

"What would Kaji have stolen from YOU?"

_"My DNA."_

Zack cocked his head to the right. "…Wha?"

_"This boy has been carrying my genes since he was an infant. For years he has been my vessel—stealing bits and pieces of my strength in order to ensure his own survival. It is high time that he returned what he stole."_ Ifrit was about to draw one of his claws and attack Kaji.

There was the sound of a sword being flown across the flames, and sure enough, the legendary Buster Sword slashed Ifrit through the shoulder, causing him to drop Kaji, blood splattering onto the boy's body. Zack sprang forward and caught Kaji. The Buster Sword aimlessly floated before him, a white feather floating just centimeters above it.

"…Angeal?" Ifrit charged at the man, trying to strike. Zack dodged the attack and then grabbed hold of the sword, pointing it at Ifrit, Kaji still in his arms. "You want him? Then come over here and get him!"

Ifrit roared, charging at Zack, who managed to swiftly attack with one arms with no trouble. Out of nowhere, Kaji broke free from Zack's grip, eyes still amber.

**Leave him to me now, Zack!**

"Kaji, w-what are you doing?"

**I have the strength now—I just needed to get out of ol' Ifrit's grasp! Let me show you what I can do now!**

Kaji held up a hand, casting a river of flames from behind him onto the beast. Ifrit just laughed at this until Kaji suddenly brought out a Blizzaga Materia, throwing it into the flames. It exploded on impact, the flames completely freezing—directly at Ifrit.

"Whoa…" Zack breathed out.

Then Kaji held up his free hand and what appeared to be a ball of flames had desecrated above Ifrit's body.

_**O' Holy Flames of night…**_

_** Born of Father Ifrit…**_

_** Of pieces of Dante's Inferno…**_

_** And strength of Heaven's will…**_

_** Bestow to me, O' Holy Flames**_

_** The light of ember rains**_

_** Bless me with His everlasting seed**_

_** Of Heaven and Hell's might.**_

Kaji smirked, slowly closing his palms again. Zack was growing more and more bewildered by the sight. **Mega Flare! **

The flames rained down upon Ifrit at incredible speed, the ice shattering and taking Ifrit along with it.

"…DAMN!" Zack yelled in awe. "Kaji, that was fricking AWESOME, when did you learn to do THAT? How did you-?" Zack noticed that the boy was hunched over, coughing. "H-Hey, are you okay?"

**Don't… worry, Zack… Get to the REAL me, on… the outside… He should be back to normal now…** Zack nodded a bit as he was transported back to the outside.

* * *

><p>Zack picked up the summon stone first and put it into his back pocket before racing over to Kaji's now still form.<p>

"Kaji! Kaji, hey, are you okay?" No response. He hadn't been severely burned, so why wasn't he conscious any-? Zack paused when he noticed that the boy was barely breathing—his face was harboring a light shade of blue. He threw two fingers over the boy's neck. He barely had a pulse. "N-No…!" He lifted the boy up off of the sand, racing ahead, even going so far as to stop random people. "Hospital, where?"

"O-Over by the hotels!" Zack followed the markings that led to the hotels, then noticed the hospital in the distance.

"Help, I need help, please!" Zack exclaimed once he had gotten into the building. "M-My kid, he's not breathing!" Doctors and nurses scrambled to his aide, and Zack could only watch as Kaji was taken away. He felt traumatized.

He needed to tell them…

"Hello?" Reno replied once he had answered his phone.

"Reno, you guys need to get here NOW."

"Get where, Zack?"

"To the hospital." He choked out.

"…What happened?"

"K-Kaji, he… he was hardly breathing when I got to him, I…!" Zack let out a staggered breath, as if he were mere seconds from breaking down—something completely out of his character. "I can't deal with this alone…!"

"Don't panic, we're on our way now." Reno hung up.

Zack sat down, covering his face. "What the hell have I DONE…?"

* * *

><p>Only minutes later, Reno, Rude and Cissnei ran into the hospital and found the young First Class.<p>

"Okay, WHAT is going on here?" Reno asked. Zack slowly looked up at the three.

"…Kaji is… He told me that he was carrying Ifrit's DNA…" Cissnei was in a bit of shock. "When I found him… Ifrit was trying to take it back, but Kaji managed to subconsciously subdue him. And when he was freed… he wasn't breathing well, and he wasn't waking up…"

"Then the kid is possessed?"

"He isn't possessed." Rude began. "Kaji is just carrying something that isn't his. And it's likely not his fault, even if he is beginning to lose the power to control it."

"…I'll be right back… I'm… going to go get some coffee." Cissnei replied, walking off. Zack just stared at her as she walked off.

* * *

><p>Cissnei stopped walking after some time and then pulled out her cell phone, dialing a number.<p>

"Shinra Science Department."

"I'd like to speak to your boss. It's about this lost experiment of his."

* * *

><p>Hours passed…<p>

And there was still no word of Kaji's condition. It was freaking Zack out to no avail, even after trying to ease his nerves—he finally decided to turn to the beers that Reno managed to smuggle.

"Zack, stop twitching, it's getting annoying." Cissnei exclaimed.

"I can't help it! I'm worried half to death here! My kid might be dying in there and I can't do anything about it!" Zack sighed heavily. "Reno, gimme a beer…"

Reno shrugged, did so, and Zack chugged it down mere seconds later. "Better slow down with that before you end up turning into an alcoholic…"

"First of all, I'm an adult now, I can do what I want. Second of all, I can drink ten of these things and not even BUZZ because I can hold my damn liquor. Third, I'm under stress, and I'll still do what I want."

"Just don't get caught up…" Rude replied, eyes glued to a Time magazine issue from about ten years ago—why it was there, and why someone like Rude even had it, the world would never understand.

"Well, right now, I don't care." Zack was about to drink until the physician walked out. The bottle fell to the floor, and somehow didn't shatter.

"…Mr. Fair, do you have a drinking problem? You know that those aren't allowed in here." The middle-aged man appeared stern.

"N-No, sir, not at all!"

"You seem pretty young. How old are you?"

"Nineteen…"

"And you have an eight year old song, correct?"

"H-He isn't MY son, but I am taking care of him…"

The man adjusted his glasses a bit, furrowing his brow. "Mr. Fair, I would like a word with you, preferably alone. Come with me."

Zack didn't even try to think about the positive aspects of this situation. There couldn't have been any at this rate.

* * *

><p>"Now, about your child…"<p>

"Kaji…" Zack mumbled.

"Ah, of course. Kaji is quite an interesting child indeed. We found no trace of data on medical records involving him… spare the data on ideas in Shinra entitled 'Project KAJI'… Now, I know nothing of Shinra's silly plots, so I won't hold any of that against you. I am more concerned about your parenting skills, Mr. Fair." Zack's eyes went deadlocked on the checkered tiles as the words subconsciously echoed. "Were you aware that Kaji is suffering from malnutrition?"

"I recently discovered it for myself."

"And why was this caused?"

"…Every time that I tried to get him to eat, he wouldn't, no matter how hard I tried!" Zack exclaimed.

"Let me ask you another question—have you ever taken Kaji's feelings into dire consideration before making decisions for his sake?"

"I ALWAYS take Kaji's feelings into consideration!"

"If you had, then you would have decided long ago to put him first and departed from SOLDIER." Zack had to hold his rage in.

"Where is he?" Silence. "Where is Kaji? Tell me NOW!"

"He is recovering—"

"WHERE?" Zack bellowed, now up on his feet.

"It's not as though he would be able to hear you calling out to him—he's been put to rest, and is in a mild coma." Zack grabbed the man by his tie, gripping it.

"Look here, dammit, you tell me where my kid is or I'll put you into a jar in a way that'll get me arrested for life!"

"…Room 14B." The physician replied, his words all too slowly arising. Zack released him and then raced out of the office.

* * *

><p>The halls reeked of antiseptic and foul medicine, each turn purely doused in white—whose idea was it for hospitals to even have white walls anyways? Zack eventually came to a room labeled 14B: Specialties.<p>

Why the hell was it labeled 'specialties'?

Zack opened the door, and immediately his Mako eyes went bewildered. Kaji was still unconscious, an oxygen mask covering his mouth and nose. There was an IV tube lodged into his left arm, and Zack could barely even hear the heart radar beating. He walked over to the boy's bedside, reaching out a hand, gently stroking the boy's head.

"Kaji… I'm so sorry… I-I never wanted anything like this to happen… I didn't mean for things to turn out like this, I really didn't…" He gently took the boy's hand. "It's… no wonder that even you rejected my parenting skills… Maybe I'm just not cut out to take care of a child on my own at all… I mean, I couldn't even keep you safe without all of this occurring so quickly…" He released Kaji's hand and started to get to his feet. "…It's time I grew up. It isn't time for this yet." He turned to leave.

"…You say that like you're about to leave me…" Zack froze. "You… promised me you wouldn't leave… didn't you…?" Zack glanced back in time to see the boy remove the oxygen mask from his face. "…I want to go home with you, dad…!"

Zack was stunned. _Dad… _"…You want to go back to Shinra? It's not safe for you there anymore."

"I don't care! I-If I'm with you, then everything's okay!"

"Kaji… Is that really what you want?"

"I just want to go home… I want to be with my family—with you… Can we go…? Please…?" Zack wrapped his arms around the boy tightly, tears welling in his eyes.

"We're going home really soon, Kaji… I promise… We're going home."

* * *

><p>"Dad…"<p>

"Mhm?"

"Can you sing that song again?" Zack grinned, ruffling the boy's hair.

"Of all things, you ask for that?"

"Because I like it. And the song is yours… I want to hear it." Kaji replied. Zack began humming a few bars before beginning the song again. Kaji began to smile, crawling into the man's arms as soon as the lyrics strung together. Soon Zack had finished the first verse and the chorus, then ceased. "…Aw, that's it?"

"That's all I remembered from the song. Maybe it'll come to me again."

"Ooh, maybe we can finish it together! I wanna hear how it sounds in, um… What was the dominate language of the world?"

"English?"

"Yeah, yeah!"

"I see things are going well." Reno and Rude had entered the room.

"Yeah, Kaji's doing much better now." Zack replied.

"I meant with you." Rude stated. "You looked pretty torn apart when the physician asked to speak with you privately."

"…He acted as if he were trying to take Kaji away from me. I want to get out of this place as soon as possible, and so does Kaji."

"The boat is coming back to take us to Shinra tomorrow. Cissnei checked in. We'll be staying at the hotel tonight and then leaving first thing in the morning."

"Kaji's supposed to be getting discharged in a couple of hours, so I'm gonna wait here with him until then."

"Well, check out who's getting nominated for 'father of the year' now!" Reno joked. "We'll be getting things together for the evening—reservations, food, the works."

"All right. Be there later." Then Reno and Rude left the premises.

"…Dad… I need to tell you something…"

"What is it?"

"…I… I hold part of you inside me…"

"Wait…. What? What does that mean?"

"It's complicated…"

"I've got time to listen."

"…You know how, um, I have Ifrit's DNA?" Zack nodded. "Well… when I was three years old… I lost control of the DNA, and… the men in the white lab-coats used your genes from the Mako surgery to stabilize Ifrit's powers. Your genes proved strong… that's why I look so much like you."

"Is that what you meant back then, when you said that you didn't want to take more than you already had from me?" Kaji slowly nodded.

"I just… I was scared that I'd take more than your DNA away from you."

"Hey… Listen to me, Kaji. There's nothing to be afraid of around me. Okay?" Kaji nodded a bit. Then Zack began to hear distant voices—ones that sounded directly outside of the room.

"What do… about… Fair?"

"That child of… is extraordinary… We can… over… Shinra." Zack processed the words he could make out.

_**'What do you want to… do about, um… Zack Fair?' **__Do about me?_

_ **'That child of his is extraordinary… We can try and turn him over… to Shinra.' **Over my dead body!_

Zack lifted Kaji up, grabbing his change of clothes and accidentally yanking out the I.V. tube.

"OUCH!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Zack sighed. "We need to get out of here!"

"W-What's going on?"

"Those physicians have you placed in specialties for a reason—they want to turn you back over to Shinra."

"What? There's no way I'm going back to THAT life!"

"Exactly!" Zack went over to the door, tugging on it a bit. "Locked? Damn…!"

"What do we do now?" Zack noticed a window on the opposite side of the room, and then smirked.

"We're going to use SOLDIER instinct." He carried the boy to the window, tugging a bit on the large metal lock. "Quick, try to use your fire to pick the lock."

"How?"

"…You burn it."

"Ah." Kaji held up a hand, casting flames upon the lock. After a few moments, it fell to the floor with a thud, and both of the ravens glanced back with wide eyes.

"What was that?" Zack immediately pushed the window open with his free hand and then set Kaji on the windowsill.

"Kaji, go ahead of me, and don't stop running! Go find the hotel, hide there and wait for me to get there!"

"B-But-!"

"GO, Kaji!" Kaji leapt off of the windowsill two stories down and into bushes. He glanced back up as Zack closed the window again, then started to race back to the hotel. Zack glanced back as the door opened, and two physicians walked in.

"Mr. Fair, we have a proposition for you."

"Do you now?" Zack sneered.

"We are willing to pay you a hefty sum in exchange for custody of your child."

"Funny, I have a proposition for you too." Zack tossed a smoke ball Materia up into the air, and within seconds, the room was clouded in white smoke. "And that's FREE!" He raced out of the room and down the hall, out of the hospital.

* * *

><p>By the time that Zack had returned to the hotel, he found Kaji hiding in the closet. "Wow, you actually hid. Good job, little guy."<p>

"Dad… when can we go home…?"

"Soon, I promise." Kaji crawled out of the closet and Zack lifted him up. "It's been a long day for you. Are you tired?"

"Not really."

"That's a first. You usually are."

"I'm hungry…"

"O-Oh, hold on, I'll go and order food, okay?"

"I wanna go get it!"

"Huh? You sure?"

Kaji nodded, grinning. "It might be fun exploring on the way!"

"…Just try to stay out of trouble."

"Don't worry, I will!" Zack handed him some spare Gil.

"And don't take too long."

"No promises." Then Kaji exited the hotel room, card key in hand.

* * *

><p>"Um, can I have some… tempura, please?" Kaji asked, scanning a board menu. He obtained his meal moments later. "Thank you!" He began walking, accidentally bumping into a girl. "Oh, sorry, I-"<p>

"N-No, it was-" Kaji stared at her. She had long black hair that nearly covered her pure black eyes—weird. "…Sorry, I have to go; my uncle is waiting for me."

"O-Okay, I'm really sorry about that again…" Then the girl ran off, and Kaji continued walking off again.

"Hey, did you see those flames earlier?"

"Yeah, yeah, the ones on the beach!"

"I heard they vanished without a trace."

Kaji sped up a bit to the point where he was jogging in place as he was waiting for the elevator to arrive. He raced inside once it had. "Fourth floor, please."

"In a rush, young sir?" The attendant asked.

"N-No, I'm just-" He glanced at his bowl of tempura briefly, "-REALLY hungry and really anxious to get back to my room."

"Ah, I see." The doors opened. "Enjoy your lunch, sir." However, the moment that Kaji had gotten off the elevator, he dropped his tempura.

They were at his door. The men in white lab-coats were in his view. They were now interrogating Cissnei, who appeared to be covering for Zack.

_**"Don't just stand there, you fool, RUN!"**_ Kaji heeded Ifrit's warning and slowly backed up and further from the scene before dashing off. The scientists glanced back.

"Hey! That's him, isn't it?" As they raced after him, Cissnei ran for Zack's door and knocked furiously on it until Zack answered.

"Kaji's being pursued!" Zack froze. "The hallway here goes in a large circle; you can catch him if you go in the opposite direction!" Cissnei pointed to her left. Zack obeyed her ideals and ran ahead.

"Got it, thanks!"

* * *

><p>Kaji could feel his energy diminishing as he heard the distant footsteps of the scientists behind him. Then he felt a sharp poke in his left shoulder and glanced down. There was what appeared to be a syringe lodged there, a green liquid seeping out of it. It took seconds for him to feel nauseous and his vision blur. He had nearly collapsed until he felt someone catch him, pick him up, and race off. Then he heard a door close.<p>

"Kaji! Kaji, you okay? Say something!" Kaji could make out spiked raven locks, and clung to Zack, whining a bit from the pain. Zack then jumped from the sound of voices, pulling out his phone and accessing a mission after multiple tries. "Mission start!"

By the time that the scientists had found the supply closet, they were gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Next chapter will be the last, like I said earlier. :3<strong>


	11. Love

**Well, this is it. The last chapter of this story, at long last. **

**^_^ Maybe there really WILL be a sequel, maybe not. I did have one planned... 0_0**

**^_^ Thank you all for taking the time to read this!**

**Kazuki: *Rolls eyes* Why are we only in the final ONCE?**

**Satsuki: 0_0 I'm just happy we're in at all... After all, we were technically supposed to be supporting characters.**

**Kaji: ^_^ Don't worry! I hear that in the planned sequel, you have larger roles-**

**Me: KAJI!**

**Kaji: 0.0 Whoops.**

**Me: ...BACK. TO THE CORNERS.**

**Kaji, Satsuki and Kazuki: Fine...**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 10:<strong>_

_Gotta love those mission apps…_

Zack was carrying Kaji's half-conscious form on his back as he traveled through the woods in Nibelheim. It had been the closest they could get to where Zack had been planning to go for the longest time.

"Dad… where… are we going…?" Kaji's voice seemed strained.

"We're gonna go see my hometown. We're going to be resting up there until we can figure out where to go from there." Kaji groaned a bit, resting his head on the man's shoulder. "Are you still not feeling well?"

"My whole body hurts…"

"To me, it's amazing that you can even take that Mako… You're a lot younger than most of the people who got a case of Mako poisoning, minor or not, and they practically threw it at you…"

"I spent three years of my life having it in my system… But even now, it makes me sick…" As if on cue, Kaji felt his stomach lurch. "P-Put me down, quick…!"

Zack obeyed, and Kaji managed to get to a nearby bush. The man immediately covered his eyes and looked away as his child emptied the contents of his stomach. A few moments later, Zack looked to Kaji again.

"Are you okay…?"

Kaji, in turn, weakly glanced back up at him and smiled. "I-I feel much better now…" Zack walked over to him and Kaji once again climbed onto his back.

"We've got a long trip ahead of us. Get some sleep for the both of us."

"…I'm not tired…"

"Please?"

"…Okay…" Kaji slowly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep while Zack continued to trek through Nibelheim… for the both of them.

* * *

><p>~Sector 5 Slums~<p>

Satsuki paused when she suddenly sensed something almost too familiar… the sensation burned like a fire…

"It feels… dim…" She looked to the plate above—the only way to reach Midgar. "Up there… he's suffering, isn't he…? Within the hands of Shinra…"

"We've all had to suffer for years because of Shinra." Satsuki faced Kazuki, who had unexpectedly walked up next to her and began looking to the plate as well. "All of us… Those of us here in the slums living as lost souls or even as slaves to their opinion… in Wutai as soldiers looking to avenge the fallen… Even those that are living in the world of SOLDIER are suffering the most. Imagine just how he would feel, to be so young and be exposed to the heinous crimes of that world."

Satsuki's eyes darted to the ground. "…"

"There's never going to be an end because there's no driving force. You want the suffering to end…" He walked past her. "Then you've gotta take out Shinra first."

Satsuki thought for a moment. He was right. Then she trailed behind him.

* * *

><p>~Nibelheim: Outskirts~<p>

"Doing okay back there?"

"Fine…" Kaji glanced up slightly. "Whoa. Where'd the light go?"

"It's after nine at night. You slept the whole way."

"…Oh…"

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"…I don't know… I still feel numb, and my head's hurting…"

"Mako does that to you at a much faster pace, so try and take it easy or you're going to trigger side effects."

"There's no way to heal it?"

"Not completely." Kaji rested his head on the man's shoulder again.

"Hey, dad… When we get back from visiting your hometown, can we go back to the slums to visit?"

"Why bring that up all of a sudden?"

"…I think you really miss Aerith."

Zack chuckled a bit. "Maybe I am. Probably as much as you're missing Satsuki, Kaji. But love can do crazy and powerful things to one's heart, ya know."

"…What's love?"

"There isn't really one meaning to love."

"Well, what do you think it is?"

"Love is… Hm… well, love comes in a lot of shapes and different kinds of colors. There's a type of love in the form of friendship, another in liking something… like a favorite food or a certain hobby."

"Like how you love fighting?"

"Exactly."

"Well, what about love in a way that you are with Aerith?"

"Aerith and I formed a strong bond from the moment we met, and before I even knew it… I fell in love with her. She was the only person I wanted. Love in that form is truly unexpected, and… well, I guess it's even harder to understand if you've never experienced it for yourself, and even when you have."

"What about… you and me?"

"Oh, you mean like the bond between a child and a parent? That's a different level of love." Zack began. "With the two of us in mind, the bond between a parent and a child… Right now for me, it's… it's one of the most surreal feelings in the world. I don't regret the day that I brought you back with me."

Kaji gently smiled at him, closing his eyes. "Dad…"

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask one more thing…?"

"Fire away."

"…Even after all that we've gone through… and the fact that I carry you inside of me… do you love having me as a son?"

"I love having you as a son, whether you're my biological son or not. You've changed me, Kaji, and I know that what happened in the past was not your fault. Your past is your past, and what's most important is what reflects on your present. I want you to grow up to become someone of great status mentally—someone strong enough to accept his own ideals."

Kaji had already returned to sleep.

* * *

><p>~Gongaga, the following morning~<p>

"This is Gongaga, my home!" Zack beamed. Kaji had to stifle a laugh at the mere sound of the tiny village's name. "H-Hey, don't laugh! Pfft, as if YOU would know anything about this place!"

"It's just the way that you said it." Kaji looked around a bit. "Is this really where you grew up?"

"Backwater type of place, isn't it?"

"No, I think it's really quaint… It's almost a relief to be here." Kaji walked ahead, occasionally looking back to Zack. "…Why did you leave here?"

"To become a hero."

"What about your parents?" Zack crossed his arms, looking away.

"I don't know. I left home when I was thirteen to join SOLDIER, and I never told my parents where I was going."

Kaji paused. "…Then you ran away?"

"Could you really blame me for wanting to become a hero at any cost—even leaving behind my parents in order to live out my dreams?"

"I wouldn't!" Kaji choked out. "I wouldn't ever leave you, dad!"

Zack patted the boy's head. "Everyone has a time to leave this world, Kaji. There's going to be a time when you're going to grow up, and there will be multiple occasions where you'll wish to be a child again. And eventually, your soul will return to the life-stream from whence you came." Kaji's eyes saddened a bit. "Some of us will die sooner than others, and once that will happen to anyone who dies… I know that we may have regrets. I just want to be able to live out my dream before my time is up. That's why I decided to leave home early."

"There's no way that you could die before me!"

"Well, it's too soon to say that…" He moved a strand of hair from over the boy's eyes, "Since there's no telling when we'll go back to where we belong."

Kaji leaned in a bit to the touch. "…I don't want to die yet…"

"You won't, Kaji. Not as long as I'm here. Don't doubt yourself."

"I'm not…"

"Hey, that's a SOLDIER operative!" Zack paused and then glanced back, spotting a group of infantrymen. Their eyes were focused on Kaji, who immediately clung to Zack's pants leg. "He has that experiment!"

"Shit!" Zack lifted Kaji up and then raced off. "How could they have possibly hunted us down?" The infantrymen swarmed and instantly gave chase, firing round after round at them. Kaji buried his face in Zack's chest as the man swiftly dodged, petrified by the gunshots.

"Dad…!" Zack glanced back at the infantrymen, and then smirked.

"Hold on tight, we'll hit them off at the cliff." Zack sped up and ran for the cliff, then glanced back again—the infantrymen weren't as fast, but they were hot on the trail. Kaji then hid within the bushes, and Kaji clung to him, stifling a cry. "Shh…"

Kaji eased up a bit. The infantrymen casually went past the bushes and scanned the area. Zack's eyes narrowed, and he kept a slight grip on the Buster Sword with one hand and the nearly inconsolable Kaji in his other. About twenty endless minutes had gone by before the infantrymen went past them, and once Zack heard the leader report back and then they all left, he came out of hiding, cradling the crying boy in his arms.

"Hey… it's okay, Kaji… It's okay, we're safe now…"

"T-They t-tried to kill you!" Kaji sobbed.

"But they didn't. Calm down…" Zack held him closer. "I'm here…" Then he began walking in the opposite direction, back down from the cliffs.

"…Where are we going…?"

"To see my parents."

* * *

><p>Zack found his house after taking in the sight of the tiny village once again. He gathered his courage and then began knocking on the door once he had set Kaji on the ground. A man with medium length black hair with grey tints that stood about two inches taller than Zack answered, and his steel eyes went wide. <strong><em>{AN: 0_0 I... DON'T really own Alexander, whom I named after the magical summon Alexander. I created his character personality, but Zack's parents did play a small role in VII.}_**

"Age hasn't been good to you, ay, pop?"

"Zackary Fair, you have NO right to make fun of my age!" The man embraced Zack and then young SOLDIER warrior grinned. "Where have you BEEN all of these years, under a rock?" Zack pointed down at his attire.

"SOLDIER First Class Zack Fair, reporting home for a visit!"

"Oh, so you DID get far in SOLDIER! I always knew my boy would find a way to make us proud!" Kaji poked his head out from behind Zack, glancing up at the man. "Aw, this guy—Wait a second, why does he look just like YOU?"

"Um… In some ways, this is your grandson, Kaji." Kaji shyly waved at the man. "Kaji, this is my dad, Alexander Fair."

Alexander looked to Zack. "Can we talk about this?"

"Later on." Zack peered inside slightly. "Ooh, mom's cooking~"

"Hey, Danielle, get in here, we've got guests!" A woman with long black hair peered out from the kitchen, and she dropped the bowl she was holding to the floor.

"Y-You…"

Zack waved a bit. "Hi, mom." She practically bolted out of the kitchen just to hug him. Kaji saw the height difference between the two instantly. She was about 5'6, not much shorter than Zack. _**{A/N: Danielle... I got her name from thinking about Daniel. XD I was watching Advent Children once when I was writing this part, forgive me. Yet again, she is but she isn't really owned by me.}**_

"My baby… My baby's come home…!"

"Yep, I came home, mom…" Zack replied, petting the woman's hair with a large smile on his face. "I'm home."

"Danielle, our son has brought home a little guest…" Alexander began. Danielle glanced up at Zack, then down towards the now helplessly confused eight year old boy. Her expression darkened a bit when she saw his face alone. Within seconds, Zack could slowly feel his pulse rate dimming.

"M-Mommy, y-you're cutting off my circulation…!" Danielle released the grip she had on her son—so THAT was where Zack got his strength?

"Zackary, a WORD."

"Y-Yes, mommy!" Zack went into the kitchen with her.

Alexander chuckled a bit, and then looked to Kaji. "He's in for it now, huh?"

"Alexander, get in here THIS INSTANT!" Alexander tensed up before gulping.

"C-Coming, honey!" He looked to Kaji again. "You can have a seat anywhere, Kaji. Grandma and grandpa are just gonna go and have a chat with Zack."

Kaji nodded a bit, taking a seat on the couch.

* * *

><p>"Zack, GRANDSON?"<p>

"Well, mom, you DID say that you wanted some when you and I got older…" She shoved him a bit, highly pissed.

"I meant that you should have waited before you acted!" She looked to Alexander. "And you're over there casually calling him our grandson, did you KNOW about this?"

"What? No, of COURSE not!"

"Mom, relax, will ya? Kaji isn't my birth son, but he's carrying my genes in his system, which makes us related. He's mine." Danielle was confused. "…I know it's confusing, but it's hard for me to explain too… I can't drag him back into the life he used to have before I found him…"

Kaji had his ear pressed against the door, remaining perfectly still.

"Aw, Dani, give the boy a break. He just came home, after all."

Danielle calmed a bit. "Okay… I can deal… No more surprises… no… secret girlfriends or anything like that?"

"…Well, actually…"

"Zackary Fair, you went and got a girlfriend and didn't tell me!" Danielle had the boy caught in a chokehold.

"D-Dad, little help!"

"Sorry, kiddo, mom's the one wearing the pants right now. I can't really interfere when that happens."

"What kind of man ARE you?" Zack whined.

"Um… One who loves his wife very, very much?"

"What ELSE are you hiding from us, Zack?" Danielle whined. "Have you lost your innocence?"

"What? Mom, NO!"

"But the day's still young…"

"Alexander!" Danielle hissed.

"C'mon, the boy's handsome and he's not getting any younger—some pretty girl was bound to scoop him up someday."

"Well, actually… I fell through her second roof. Long story."

"…My baby…" Danielle whimpered.

From the other side of the door, Kaji groaned slightly. _'Ugh, my head's really foggy… The Mako must still be messing with my system…'_

Zack suddenly opened the door and ended up whacking the boy in the head, knocking him to the floor.

"Oh, crap, Kaji, are you okay? I'm sorry!" Zack helped him to his feet.

"Whee, pretty stars~…" Kaji snapped out of it, shaking his head frantically. "Sorry, I'm fine, really, I am…"

"Geez, Zack, are you trying to take the boy's head off?" Alexander ruffled the youngest boy's hair a bit.

"Hey, in my defense, I didn't even know that he was right there!"

"Guess he really DOES have your blood somewhere in there—he's just like you were at his age, except you were much more energetic."

"Dad, am I really like you?" Kaji asked.

"Well, in some ways." The boy grinned.

"Hey, Zack, why don't you two go on upstairs to your old room? Dinner should be ready soon."

"Geez, dad, what am I, five?" Zack grinned, leading the boy upstairs.

* * *

><p>Zack opened the door to the tiny room, and Kaji walked inside first, looking around. There were pictures of a man with knee-length silver hair on the ceiling along with SOLDIER decorations.<p>

"Who's the guy?"

"Oh, that's Sephiroth. He's considered SOLDIER's hero, and he's a First Class like I am—the best among us too. I idolized him a lot when I was younger." _**{A/N: ...Well, at least Sephiroth got an honorable mention. =3}**_

"He must have inspired you to join SOLDIER too."

"I guess he did." Kaji took a seat on the bed.

"Hey Zack… How did you find your way into SOLDIER anyways? Was it hard?"

"Well… It all started two years ago, when I became an infantryman for Shinra…"

* * *

><p>About an hour had passed before Alexander had entered the room. Zack glanced back at him and smiled.<p>

"Hey, dad."

"Hey." Then Alexander glanced at the sleeping boy on Zack's bed. "Kaji fell asleep, I see."

"Yeah, it's one of his hobbies."

"Well, your mom said to come down for dinner."

"What're we having?"

"Beef stew and tempura."

"…What a weird idea. My favorite and Kaji's favorite at once."

"Coming downstairs?"

"Yeah, just let me wake him up." Alexander nodded and went back downstairs. "Kaji, time for dinner…" Zack shook him a bit.

Kaji jolted awake. "Huh?" Pain suddenly rushed throughout his body, but he managed to pause before he could allow it to show.

"You hungry, frantic?"

"Y-Yeah, a little…"

"Food's ready."

"Okay…" Kaji groaned a bit before sitting up. Zack crossed his arms.

"Your energy seems kinda low. Still not feeling that well?"

"Not really… I think the Mako is getting to me…" Zack went through his item storage and pulled out an antidote.

"Here, see if that helps." Kaji stared at the clear liquid before putting it up to his lips. Almost immediately, he cringed and tried to wipe the substance off of his tongue.

"UGH! What is that stuff MADE of?"

"Um… Behemoth sweat and a bit of Moogle magic for flavor," Zack lied smoothly. "It might taste bad, but it'll help or my name isn't Rich Mandope."

"…But it's NOT."

"Just drink the stuff." Kaji plugged his nose and downed the liquid, shuddering a bit.

"Okay, really, what IS that suff?"

"I think it's just vitamin water and tea leaf filling. The filling is bitter to douse any type of poison the body may be dealing with."

"Oh…" Kaji could feel the liquid sitting in his stomach and clutched it, groaning. "It doesn't help me… My stomach hurts…" The boy then laid back down on the bed and Zack pulled the blanket over him a bit. _**{A/N: In other words, Kaji is practically immune to the antidote, he just doesn't know it.}**_

Moments later, Danielle entered the room. "Is everything okay up here?"

"Kaji isn't feeling well, mom…" Danielle walked over to the boy, examining him.

"He looks a bit pale… Did you check to see if he has a fever?" Zack shook his head, and Danielle sighed. She placed the back of her hand over the boy's forehead, and he slightly cringed from her cold touch. "It's slight, but it might rise… There's no doubt that he's caught something out there." She glanced back at Zack. "Honey, you came all this way, you should go downstairs and eat. I can take care of Kaji."

"M-Mom, are you sure?"

"I'm sure. Go on, go." Zack nodded a bit before exiting the room and going downstairs. Danielle looked to the boy, who slowly closed his eyes, moaning a bit.

"I knew I was getting sick…"

"You're not gonna sit here and feel guilty about it, are you?" Kaji slightly shook his head. "Well, it appears that you ARE Zack's son if you have such a mentality."

"Really…?" Kaji turned on his side. "…I've been hearing it so much… it's almost gut-wrenching…"

"Gut-wrenching?"

"Just thinking about what I took from Zack… It just… It makes me sick…" Danielle just stared at the boy—actually, more like glared.

* * *

><p>"You STILL can't seem to keep up with me when it comes to eating!" Alexander boasted, laughing like a maniac. Zack finished yet another bowl of stew—the tenth. Alexander was on his thirteenth and counting. "Honestly, I thought you would gain more out of being in SOLDIER!"<p>

"So I'm not a glutton! Big deal, I'm a great deal stronger!"

"But you're still not like your old man though!"

"Oh-ho-ho, you wanna go?"

"If you can rise to the challenge."

Zack smirked. "Come and get it."

"NO brawling in the house, boys." Danielle called, causing both men to freeze in mid-fighting position. "And calm down—you can move, you know. I'm not violent."

"How's Kaji?" Zack asked.

"He went back to sleep…" Danielle replied, tending to dishes in the kitchen.

"Is that all?"

"Yep, that's all."

"What's wrong with Kaji?" Alexander asked.

"He isn't feeling very well." Danielle and Zack replied in unison, causing Alexander to sweat-drop, shaking his head.

"…Fine. Leave me out…"

Zack looked to Danielle again. "Mom, you look tense… Is something wrong?"

"Did Kaji take something from you?"

"…Why do you-?"

"He said that thinking of what he took from you made him feel sick."

"…Mom, I could never explain Kaji's very existence to you because I can barely understand him for myself!"

"You STILL don't get me?" The three glanced up at the top of the stairs and faced Kaji. Steel eyes were filled with such remorse—such rage. "…I should have known it wasn't meant for me to have a family that understands me!" Then he ran off.

"Kaji! Hey, hold on!" The door to Zack's room had slammed from above. The impact made the entire house rattle. "…He hates me…"

"I'll go talk to him." Alexander replied.

"No, dad, really, I can do-"

"Zack… Trust me, I can do this. I have experience with dealing with a kid." Alexander went upstairs.

"Mom, I can't BELIEVE you did that!"

"All that I did was ask him if he was all right, Zack; YOU'RE the one that blew out of this all out of proportion!"

"You didn't have to question him!"

"I never knew that he was listening!" Danielle snapped. Zack walked past her and then went into the kitchen.

* * *

><p>"Kaji? It's grandpa, can I talk to you?"<p>

"Go away!" Kaji hissed. Alexander ran his finger along the upper rims of the door before coming across a small silver key.

Thank goodness Zack never took it back.

He unlocked the door and entered Zack's room. Kaji was shaking in the corner of the room, clinging to one of Zack's pillows for dear life, amber eyes of Ifrit attempting to break through the steel passages.

Alexander made his way over to the boy, lifting him up. "Don't mind Zack… He only meant that he's still getting used to knowing the real you. No need to get so worked up…" Kaji's breathing got a bit labored.

"A-Augh!"

"What is it?"

"M-My body's…!"

_**"Go back to sleep, you brainless child."**_

Kaji felt his body shut down completely, and Alexander put a hand over the boy's forehead. "…He's burning up… He must have over-exerted himself…" Alexander gently laid his form on the bed, pulling the covers over him. He wiped some sweat off of the boy's forehead with his sleeve.

**The heat is growing more intense… **

* * *

><p>~7:17 P.M~<p>

There was an abrupt knock on the front door.

"I'll get it!" Danielle called._ I wonder who that could be at this h-_ Danielle nearly had a heart attack when she found a group of SOLDIER infantrymen standing at her door.

"Good evening, ma'am. Are you aware that there is an AWOL SOLDIER operative within the area?"

AWOL? Zack was AWOL?

"U-Um, indeed, I'm aware."

"He is also carrying a loose experiment alongside him and must be taken into custody by Shinra."

"W-What?"

"Hey, mom, what's go-?" Zack froze when he spotted the men.

"That's him! Apprehend him!" The infantrymen stormed the tiny house and Zack drew the Buster Sword just as the men began firing rounds mercilessly. Danielle screamed, ducking to the floor. Zack was mortified by the very sound of his mother's scream.

His own FAMILY was being torn into the world of SOLDIER—his own family, being threatened because of him.

"STOP, DAMMIT! I'm a First Class, I'M the one who should be giving the orders here!" He roared.

"Our orders don't come from you—they come from the science department!" Alexander raced down the stairs, bat in hand.

"Get the hell out of my house!" The infantrymen quickly swarmed, and within minutes, the three were taken into custody, handcuffs locked on them.

"Zack Fair, you have been charged with theft and tampering with an important experiment that is under legal custody of the Shinra Science Department. And these people will be charged with aiding a felon."

"I am NOT a felon!"

"Zack is our SON! We have every right to assist him in whatever way we can! And Kaji is no different—he's a part of this family!" Alexander bellowed.

"Never mind those oblivious parents of his." A male voice called. From the group came an elder man wearing a lab coat, his hair pulled back into a ponytail. "I request my experiment returned immediately, and his DNA donor separate from him at once."

"Yes, Professor Hojo." The infantrymen split, some of them heading upstairs while the latter remained downstairs. _**{A/N: You all were completely right when you suspected Hojo of Kaji's situation. I had that part set from the start. One person even mentioned that this was a similar situation to Vincent Valentine *Hehe, Vincent the Vampire for me*. 0_0 Honestly, when I wrote this story out, I had never gotten past the part where Yuffie showed up in Dirge of Cerberus, but one day I just might hunt it down again to play it.}**_

Hojo looked to Zack. "You've been a great help, Mr. Fair. KAJI will be much easier to train now that you've tapped into his full power."

From upstairs, the three could hear loud screams—nearly blood-curdling screams. Zack knew that they had gotten to Kaji already, and his eyes went bewildered.

He was going to die in their hands!

"HOJO, YOU SICK BASTARD!" Zack bellowed, trying to free himself from the infantrymen. "LET ME GO! I'll KILL you! How DARE you put a child as young as Kaji through this-this BULLSHIT!"

"Ah, but in good time he will become one of the most extraordinary beings in the world. With the right crafting, he might even one day live up to Sephiroth's standards… IF he can lose his human emotions, that is."

"He doesn't need that kind of power! All he's wanted—all he needs is someone who would love and accept him! All you've done for his entire life is treat him as if he were the dirt under your fingernails! He doesn't deserve the torment that he's been receiving from Shinra! Kaji deserves a REAL place to call his home!"

"You truly believe you know this child better than the very person who created him—who gave him a life?"

Zack's eyes narrowed and he jerked as if to try and pull away from the grip. "I made him too! He's carrying my genes! So he's MY son!"

"Pure ignorance…" Hojo rubbed at his temples. "This boy may carry your genes, but he is far from being anything to you."

The infantrymen came downstairs, three of them carrying Kaji in order to keep him as restrained as possible. He was tied up in rope, his hands bound by handcuffs as well. He was currently blindfolded and half conscious. Once again, Zack jerked, but this time managed to break free from the infantryman's grip, moving forward a bit until he was restrained by two more.

"Kaji! KAJI, LISTEN! No matter what happens from here, no matter how much trouble either of us get into, and no matter how much you might cry… I'm your father, I love you, and I'm always going to be there! Remember that!"

Kaji immediately jerked as well from the sound of the man's voice, letting out hysterical yells, trying to break free. "ZACK!" And then he was taken away. Zack bit his bottom lip as the door slammed.

"You can release the elder couple." Hojo began. "The boy is to be returned to Shinra and kept away from my experiment at all costs."

Alexander and Danielle were freed, and she immediately hugged her still handcuffed son as tightly as possibly. "Zack… I'm so sorry…"

"…No, it was… I-I just…" Zack stifled a cry, and Alexander wrapped an arm around the boy.

"It's all right … It's not a good thing, but… Every man… knows what it's like when they lose a child…" Zack broke down crying.

"I-I couldn't save him…! I couldn't be his hero…!"

"You were more, Zackary… You were so much more…"

* * *

><p>~Shinra Corp-7:40 P.M~<p>

"The experiment was successfully apprehended, and his accomplice is currently being returned to Shinra as we speak. We appreciate your assistance."

Cissnei hung up her cell phone and sighed. "…So he's on his way back now…"

_'He's never going to forgive me for this…' **{A/N: ...**_**I**_** almost didn't forgive Cissnei for that.}**_

* * *

><p>~Shinra Science Department-2:52 A.M~<p>

From the moment that they had shipped him back, the scientists had been trying to stabilize Kaji's rising body heat. Eventually, they decided to just leave him in his old room and practically expected him to cool down—it was his nature, after all.

"Professor Hojo, KAJI appears to be doing a lot better physically. And based on all the prior experiences he's faced, his brain waves have tremendously begun to flow."

"And his status?"

"He continues to sleep as though his body has entered another state of relapse… I believe it has been caused by his rising temperature and body levels."

"So that boy Zack Fair has placed more trauma upon him than even I had come to anticipate… Pure drivel…"

"Professor?"

"As soon as the experiment begins to regain even the slightest sense of movement, I want for you to place him back into his Mako pod. Now that he has begun to grow in terms of strength, we shall continue from where we had previously begun."

* * *

><p><em><strong>I remember hearing voices…<strong>_

_**I didn't recognize them anymore…**_

_**I didn't even remember what happened…**_

_**What day is it?**_

_**Where am I?**_

_**Why can't I breathe well…?**_

…_**Who am I?**_

_**How do I get out of here?**_

_**Suffocating… Suffering…**_

_**Shut down… Shut down…**_

_**I want my dad… I want him back here with me… Right this minute…**_

_**I hear more crying… More of my crying…**_

_**Her beautiful face… the face of her…**_

_**My best friend…**_

_**Take me back again…**_

_**Take me back to who I once was…**_

_**Show me a future I can smile upon.**_

~End~

* * *

><p><strong>And there you have it, the end of Kaji's tale... or is it?<strong>

**Do you guys want to see a sequel? ^_^**


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